Bearded dragons() asymptomatically infected with are a source of persistent clinical infection in captive colonies of dab lizards ( sp.)

causes dermatitis and septicaemia in a variety of lizards, notably those belonging to the genus , whereas other species such as bearded dragons () seem to be asymptomatic carriers. Using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), the relatedness between 69 isolateswas examined. The isolates derived from 44 diseased lizards, of which 31 belonged to the genus , and from 25 healthy lizards, of which 21 were bearded dragons. Eight AFLP genotypes were obtained, four of which comprised 93% of the isolates. These four genotypes were each present in 2, 2, 8 and 13 different captive colonies. Up to three genotypes were isolated from a single infected colony simultaneously.On two occasions, the same genotype was found in healthy bearded dragons and diseased lizards from the same colony, confirming the role of the former as an asymptomatic source of infection for the latter. Two genotypes, comprising 12 isolates, were exclusively associated with diseased lizards, suggesting strain dependent host adaptation.Finally, was shown to be able to persist for at least seven years in a lizard colony, persistently causing severe disease in several lizard species.