The chytrid fungus only attacks the parts of a frog's skin that have keratin in them. Tadpoles can be infected around their mouths, but this is not enough to kill them. It's only when they start turning into frogs, and grow keratin in other areas, that the Chytrid fungus can spread throughout their bodies.

Can frogs survive chytrid?

The lowland leopard frog, found in river drainages in Arizona, is one of a few amphibian species in which some individuals survive infection by Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis chytrid fungus (Bd) while other individuals do not -- even when they live in the same local population.

Does chytrid fungus affect toads?

Deadly fungus

Chytrid fungi normally live in soil and water, where they break down dead organic material. But in 1998, scientists identified the species Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, which causes a deadly disease called chytridiomycosis in amphibians.