chytrid
noun
chy·trid ˈkī-trəd 
ˈki-
variants or chytrid fungus
: any simple, microscopic, aquatic fungus (phylum Chytridiomycota) that does not typically form mycelium, that bears motile spores with a single posterior flagellum, and that is either saprophytic on decaying organic matter or parasitic especially on algae, higher plants, and the skin of amphibians (as in chytridiomycosis)
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web In 1998, a chytrid fungus was found to have caused a lot of the deaths, especially those of frogs, in the rainforests of Central America and Australia. 
BostonGlobe.com, 20 May 2021 In 1998, a chytrid fungus was found to have caused many of the deaths, especially of frogs, in the rain forests of Central America and Australia. New York Times, 19 May 2021 And the chytrid fungus, which causes sloughing of skin, lethargy, weight loss, and potentially death in frogs and toads, hasn't been linked with population level declines in Wisconsin amphibians. Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 31 Mar. 2021 And vice versa: species that didn’t appear in the after-chytrid surveys may not have disappeared from the region. Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2020 Hundreds of species of frogs and toads are suffering population declines and extinctions because of the chytrid fungus disease, which is sometimes spread into new areas by humans. Ivana Kottasová, CNN, 1 June 2020 Previous research by Lips and others found that chytrid reduced amphibian abundance by 75 percent in the area, and led to the extirpation of at least 30 species. National Geographic, 13 Feb. 2020 The raw data alone was enough to suggest that chytrid was indirectly harming the snakes. National Geographic, 13 Feb. 2020 In labs, the bacteria led to the production of a chemical called violacein that killed the chytrid and boosted toad survival by 40 percent, CU scientists said. Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, 13 July 2019 See More
BostonGlobe.com, 20 May 2021 In 1998, a chytrid fungus was found to have caused many of the deaths, especially of frogs, in the rain forests of Central America and Australia. New York Times, 19 May 2021 And the chytrid fungus, which causes sloughing of skin, lethargy, weight loss, and potentially death in frogs and toads, hasn't been linked with population level declines in Wisconsin amphibians. Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 31 Mar. 2021 And vice versa: species that didn’t appear in the after-chytrid surveys may not have disappeared from the region. Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2020 Hundreds of species of frogs and toads are suffering population declines and extinctions because of the chytrid fungus disease, which is sometimes spread into new areas by humans. Ivana Kottasová, CNN, 1 June 2020 Previous research by Lips and others found that chytrid reduced amphibian abundance by 75 percent in the area, and led to the extirpation of at least 30 species. National Geographic, 13 Feb. 2020 The raw data alone was enough to suggest that chytrid was indirectly harming the snakes. National Geographic, 13 Feb. 2020 In labs, the bacteria led to the production of a chemical called violacein that killed the chytrid and boosted toad survival by 40 percent, CU scientists said. Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, 13 July 2019 See More Word History
Etymology
probably taken as singular of German Chytriden, variant of Chytridien, plural of Chytridium, a fungus genus, borrowed from New Latin, borrowed from Greek chytrídion "small pot, cup" (alluding to the pot-like sporangium), diminutive of chýtra "earthenware pot," from chy- (zero-grade stem of chéō, cheîn "to pour," going back to Indo-European *ǵheu̯-) + -trā, suffix of instruments — more at found entry 5
First Known Use
1903, in the meaning defined above