Abstract
Although research has focused on density-dependent responses to single
parasite infections, much less in known about how parasite density
affects the more common scenario in nature, co-infections. We
investigate how parasite density alters co-infection dynamics by
simultaneously exposing Cuban treefrogs (Osteopilus
septentrionalis), in all pairwise combinations and at a range of doses,
to: the nematode Aplectana hamatospicula, the chytrid fungus
(Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis), and Ranavirus. The latter two
parasites are implicated in widespread amphibian declines. We found that
all pairwise co-infections were density dependent, but some were
positively and others negatively density dependent, and these effects
drove host pathology. Also, all co-infections were highly asymmetric –
strong in one direction and weak in the other – consistent with weak
and asymmetric interactions dominating food webs and mutualistic
networks. These findings suggest that the null expectation for
co-infections should be that they are density-dependent, asymmetric, and
important to host health.