The Institute of Island Studies will launch its latest book, A Magnificent Gift Declined: The Dalton Sanatorium of Prince Edward Island, 1913-1923, on September 16^th at 7 p.m. at the Emyvale Recreation Centre in Emyvale, P.E.I.

Written by educator Leonard Cusack, the book is no ordinary community history. Cusack skillfully portrays provincial and federal political manoeuvring and the social context surrounding P.E.I.'s first hospital for treating tuberculosis, which was established in 1913.

Considered a state-of-the-art facility at the time, the Dalton Sanatorium was donated by Charles Dalton to the Province of P.E.I. and built on an isolated hilltop in the fresh country air between Charlottetown and Summerside. The facility was later expanded by the federal government to include 75 beds for returned World War One soldiers, but by 1923, the hospital was totally demolished. It would be another ten years before a new TB sanatorium was built in Charlottetown.

Described by historian Francis Bolger as "a wonderful read", and including a foreword by folklorist John Cousins, the well-crafted 168-page paperback contains many archival photos and a bibliography. It will be available in bookstores throughout P.E.I.

The public is also invited to book signings by the author on September 17 at two locations: from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Lefurgey Cultural Centre in Summerside, and at the Carriage House at Beaconsfield Historic House in Charlottetown from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Cusack is a retired high school teacher and provincial civil servant. He currently serves on the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada and teaches as a sessional lecturer at UPEI. He and his wife Catherine still reside in Emyvale where they raised five children.

The book is published by Island Studies Press, the publishing arm of the Institute of island Studies at UPEI. The Institute is a research, education and public policy institute based at UPEI. IIS focuses on the culture, environment and economy of small islands. For more information, visit upei.ca/iis/

A team of researchers from UPEI and the Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre (CCWHC) have found a potentially deadly strain of fungus for amphibians on Prince Edward Island. Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, more commonly known as chytrid fungus, is blamed for the extreme decline or extinction of more than 200 species of frogs and toads around the world.

'We started this summer asking one question: do we have this fungus on Prince Edward Island?' says Natacha Hogan, assistant professor of Biology and associate fellow of the Canadian Rivers Institute. 'The first frog we collected this summer had it. That answered our first question, but it created dozens of new ones.'

Maria Forzan, Wildlife Pathologist at AVC for CCWHC, Atlantic Region, says chytrid fungus was first discovered in the late 1990s by researchers in Central America. The fungus has since spread to Australia, South America, and North America.

'Chytrid causes a disease in the skin of frogs and toads called chytridiomycosis,' explains Forzan. 'No one knows yet how the disease kills, but we do know it thickens amphibians' skin, interfering with their ability to balance their electrolytes, and possibly even breathe. Amphibian skin is normally much more permeable than our own.'

Forzan and Hogan says it's too soon to say what chytrid fungus means to the frogs and toads of Prince Edward Island.

'Just having the fungus here doesn't mean it's causing a problem,' says Hogan. 'It may be the fungus has been here for decades and our frogs have adapted to it. But, it may also be selectively targeting one or two of our species of frogs. If that's the case, it could lead to an extreme decline, or even extirpation of one or more of our frogs or toads.'

'One problem we face is there's never been a comprehensive survey of frogs and toads on Prince Edward Island,' adds Forzan. 'So we can't say whether there's been a decline in the population, or any change at all. But we can build on the survey data we gathered this summer. This is the start of long-term research of the Island's amphibians.'

Hogan and Forzan's team, which includes UPEI biologist Kevin Teather, and CCWHC's Darlene Weeks, has created the Amphibian Health Research Network (AHRN). With funding from CCWHC, the PEI Wildlife Conservation Fund, and UPEI, they'll help better understand how chytrid fungus behaves in a northern climate and what this means for the health of amphibians on PEI.

UPEI students are known for their successful Shinerama campaigns. In 2007, they were awarded for having the best overall campaign in Canada.

UPEI faculty members Brent MacLaine, Deirdre Kessler and Sean Weibe will join other Island writers this coming weekend, September 18-20, in readings and workshops at the Pen & Inkling Festival, a celebration of the Prince Edward Island Writers' Guild's 20th anniversary.