Jeffrey M Lorch
Jeff Lorch is a Microbiologist at the National Wildlife Health Center.
He received bachelor degrees in Bacteriology and Wildlife Ecology and a Ph.D. in Molecular and Environmental Toxicology from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Since joining the USGS, Dr. Lorch has devoted his career to investigating and diagnosing wildlife mortality events and studying emerging wildlife diseases. Presently, his work focuses on disease ecology and management of bat white-nose syndrome and snake fungal disease, surveillance for Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (the fungus that causes salamander chytridiomycosis), and development of molecular methods for detection of wildlife pathogens.
Professional Experience
2015 – Present, Microbiologist, National Wildlife Health Center
2012 – 2015, Research Associate, University of Wisconsin – Madison
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. Molecular and Environmental Toxicology, University of Wisconsin – Madison, 2012
B.S. Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin – Madison, 2005
B.S. Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin – Madison, 2005
Affiliations and Memberships*
2015 – Present, Honorary Associate, Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin – Madison
Science and Products
Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) not detected in an intensive survey of wild North American amphibians
Low-level detection of SFD-causing Ophidiomyces on Burmese Pythons in southwest Florida, with confirmation of the pathogen on co-occurring native snakes
Identifying research needs to inform white-nose syndrome management decisions
Long-term survival of Pseudogymnoascus destructans at elevated temperatures
Successful molecular detection studies require clear communication among diverse research partners
Evidence of vertical transmission of the snake fungal pathogen Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola
Interactive effects of food supplementation and snake fungal disease on pregnant Pygmy Rattlesnakes and their offspring
A novel host-adapted strain of Salmonella Typhimurium causes disease in olive ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) in the Pacific.
Virally-vectored vaccine candidates against white-nose syndrome induce anti-fungal immune response in little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus)
Mortality due to Tyzzer's disease of muskrats in northern Ohio, USA
Detection of Bisgaard taxon 40 in Rhinoceros Auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata) with pneumonia and septicemia from a mortality event in Washington, USA
Field diagnostics and seasonality of Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola in wild snake populations
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
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Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) not detected in an intensive survey of wild North American amphibians
The salamander chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans [Bsal]) is causing massive mortality of salamanders in Europe. The potential for spread via international trade into North America and the high diversity of salamanders has catalyzed concern about Bsal in the U.S. Surveillance programs for invading pathogens must initially meet challenges that include low rates of occurrence on the lAuthorsHardin Waddle, Daniel A. Grear, Brittany Mosher, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Michael J. Adams, Adam R. Backlin, William Barichivich, Adrianne B. Brand, Gary M. Bucciarelli, Daniel L. Calhoun, Tara Chestnut, Jon M. Davenport, Andrew E. Dietrich, Robert N. Fisher, Brad Glorioso, Brian J. Halstead, Marc P Hayes, R. Ken Honeycutt, Blake R. Hossack, Patrick M. Kleeman, Julio A. Lemos-Espinal, Jeffrey M. Lorch, Robert W. Atkinson, Erin L. Muths, Christopher Pearl, Katherine Richgels, Charles W Robinson, Mark F. Roth, Jennifer Rowe, Walter Sadinski, Brent H. Sigafus, Iga Stasiak, Samuel Sweet, Susan C. Walls, Gregory J Watkins-Colwell, C. LeAnn White, Lori A Williams, Megan E. WinzelerLow-level detection of SFD-causing Ophidiomyces on Burmese Pythons in southwest Florida, with confirmation of the pathogen on co-occurring native snakes
Snake fungal disease (SFD), or ophidiomycosis, is caused by the fungus Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola (Allender et al. 2015; Lorch et al. 2015). SFD is widespread across wild populations in the eastern United States (Lorch et al. 2016) and is known to infect more than 30 species of snake in North America and Europe (Lorch et al. 2016; Franklinos et al. 2017). No known phylogenetic or ecological patternAuthorsBrad Glorioso, Ian A. Bartoszek, Jeffrey M. LorchIdentifying research needs to inform white-nose syndrome management decisions
Ecological understanding of host–pathogen dynamics is the basis for managing wildlife diseases. Since 2008, federal, state, and provincial agencies and tribal and private organizations have collaborated on bat and white‐nose syndrome (WNS) surveillance and monitoring, research, and management programs. Accordingly, scientists and managers have learned a lot about the hosts, pathogen, and dynamicsAuthorsRiley Bernard, Jonathan D. Reichard, Jeremy T. H. Coleman, Julie C. Blackwood, Michelle L. Verant, Jordi Segers, Jeffery M. Lorch, John Paul White, M.S. Moore, Amy L. Russell, Rachel A. Katz, Daniel L. Linder, Rick S. Toomey, Gregory G. Turner, Winifred F. Frick, Maarten J. Vonhof, Craig K. R. Willis, Evan H. Campbell GrantLong-term survival of Pseudogymnoascus destructans at elevated temperatures
White-nose syndrome is an emerging fungal disease that has devastated hibernating bat populations across eastern North America. The causal pathogen, Pseudogymnoascus destructans (PD), is a psychrophilic fungus with a known maximal growth temperature of 20 C. Although it is widely speculated that PD is primarily spread between hibernacula by the movement of bats, experimental evidence is lacking toAuthorsLewis Campbell, Daniel P. Walsh, David S. Blehert, Jeffrey M. LorchSuccessful molecular detection studies require clear communication among diverse research partners
Molecular detection techniques are powerful tools used in ecological applications ranging from diet analyses to pathogen surveillance. Research partnerships that use these tools often involve collaboration among professionals with expertise in field biology, laboratory techniques, quantitative modeling, wildlife disease, and natural resource management. However, in many cases, each of these collabAuthorsB. A. Mosher, R. F. Bernard, Jeffrey M. Lorch, D. A. W. Miller, Katherine L. D. Richgels, C. LeAnn White, Evan H. Campbell GrantEvidence of vertical transmission of the snake fungal pathogen Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola
Snake fungal disease (ophidiomycosis) is an emerging infection of snakes caused by Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola. Little is known about mechanisms of this pathogen's transmission and its implications for conservation of wild snake populations. We report four cases with evidence of vertical transmission of O. ophiodiicola from dam to offspring.AuthorsAnne G Stengle, Terence M. Farrell, Keenan S Freitas, Craig M. Lind, Steven J. Price, Brian O Butler, Tigran Tadevosyan, Marcos Isidoro Ayza, Daniel Taylor, Megan Winzeler, Jeffrey M. LorchInteractive effects of food supplementation and snake fungal disease on pregnant Pygmy Rattlesnakes and their offspring
In viviparous organisms, the ability to feed while pregnant may mitigate energetic trade-offs experienced during the reproductive process and enhance fecundity. However, anorexia during pregnancy has been reported in many crotaline snakes. The potential costs and benefits of feeding while pregnant are not completely described in the literature, and experimental studies have been conducted in a limAuthorsCraig M. Lind, Amber Clark, Sarah A Smiley-Walters, Daniel Taylor, Marcos Isidoro Ayza, Jeffrey M. Lorch, Terence M. FarrellA novel host-adapted strain of Salmonella Typhimurium causes disease in olive ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) in the Pacific.
Salmonella spp. are frequently shed by wildlife including turtles, but S. enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium or lesions associated with Salmonella are rare in turtles. Between 1996 and 2016, we necropsied 127 apparently healthy pelagic olive ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) that died from drowning bycatch in fisheries and 44 live or freshly dead stranded turtles from the west coastAuthorsThierry M. Work, Julie Dagenais, Brian A. Stacy, Jason T. Ladner, Jeffrey M. Lorch, George H. Balazs, Elias Barquero-Calvo, Brenda M. Berlowski-Zier, Renee Breeden, Natalia Corrales-Gómez, Rocio Gonzalez-Barrientos, Heather Harris, Gabriela Hernández-Mora, Angel Herrera-Ulloa, Shoreh Hesami, T. Todd Jones, Juan Alberto Morales, Terry M. Norton, Robert Rameyer, Daniel Taylor, Thomas B. WaltzekVirally-vectored vaccine candidates against white-nose syndrome induce anti-fungal immune response in little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus)
White-nose syndrome (WNS) caused by the fungus, Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd) has killed millions of North American hibernating bats. Currently, methods to prevent the disease are limited. We conducted two trials to assess potential WNS vaccine candidates in wild-caught Myotis lucifugus. In a pilot study, we immunized bats with one of four vaccine treatments or phosphate-buffered saline (PBS)AuthorsTonie E. Rocke, Brock Kingstad-Bakke, Marcel Wuthrich, Ben Stading, Rachel C. Abbott, Marcos Isidoro Ayza, Hannah E. Dobson, Lucas dos Santos Dias, Kevin Galles, Julia S. Lankton, Elizabeth Falendysz, Jeffrey M. Lorch, J. Scott Fites, Jaime Lopera-Madrid, Bruce Klein, Jorge E. Osorio, J. Paul WhiteMortality due to Tyzzer's disease of muskrats in northern Ohio, USA
In 2017, we investigated a mortality event of muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in Northwest Ohio, USA, and determined the causes of death to be from Tyzzer's disease due to Clostridium piliforme and Klebsiella pneumoniae septicemia. The gross presentation resembled tularemia, which highlighted the importance of a complete diagnostic investigation.AuthorsDaniel A. Grear, Julia S. Lankton, Sara Zaleski, Mark Witt, Jeffrey M. LorchDetection of Bisgaard taxon 40 in Rhinoceros Auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata) with pneumonia and septicemia from a mortality event in Washington, USA
We isolated Bisgaard taxon 40 from Rhinoceros Auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata) with pneumonia and septicemia from Washington, US, found dead in 2016. Previously isolated only from the respiratory tract of a gull (Laridae), little is known about its pathogenic potential and whether it acts as a primary or opportunistic pathogen.AuthorsSusan Knowles, Barbara Bodenstein, Brenda M. Berlowski-Zier, Susan M Thomas, Scott F Pearson, Jeffrey M. LorchField diagnostics and seasonality of Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola in wild snake populations
Snake fungal disease (SFD) is an emerging disease caused by the fungal pathogen, Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola. Clinical signs of SFD include dermal lesions, including regional and local edema, crusts, and ulcers. Snake fungal disease is widespread in the Eastern United States, yet there are limited data on how clinical signs of SFD compare with laboratory diagnostics. We compared two sampling methodsAuthorsJennifer M. McKenzie, Steven J. Price, J. Leo Fleckenstein, Andrea N. Drayer, Grant M. Connette, Elizabeth A. Bohuski, Jeffrey M. LorchNon-USGS Publications**
Kapfer, J.M., Sloss, B.L., Schuurman, G.W., Paloski, R.A., and Lorch, J.M. 2013. Evidence of hybridization between common gartersnakes (Thamnophis sirtalis) and Butler's gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin (USA). Journal of Herpetology 47:400-405.**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
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*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government