The scientists from Azabu University in Kanagawa Prefecture, and the National Institute for Environmental Studies said at a June 9 conference that the case involving four American bullfrogs in Kanagawa Prefecture was detected as they examined 132 frogs and newts of 23 species that inhabit Ja-pan as part of an initial study.

Besides the four bullfrogs, which had no human contact before they were directly taken from the wild and tested, the figure includes 38 frogs and newts from Chiba, Saitama, Ibaraki and Okinawa prefectures that were acquired through pet shops or Internet auctions. The chytrid fungus, first detected in 1998, is blamed for frog population plunges and even the extinction of species in Central America and Australia in recent years.

The Japan Times Weekly: June 16, 2007
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