Kassina
Encyclopedia
Kassina are a genus
of hyperoliid
frog
s, commonly referred to as running frogs. They are found throughout sub-Saharan Africa
. They are characterized by preferring a distinctive "walking" with the back legs instead of the more traditional frog hopping .
in the genus Kassina:
for the exotic pet
trade.
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of hyperoliid
Hyperoliidae
Hyperoliidae is a family of small to medium sized, brightly colored, frogs which contains more than 250 species in 19 genera. Seventeen genera are native to sub-Saharan Africa. In addition,the monotypic genus Tachycnemis occurs on the Seychelles Islands, and the genus Heterixalus is endemic to...
frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
s, commonly referred to as running frogs. They are found throughout sub-Saharan Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. They are characterized by preferring a distinctive "walking" with the back legs instead of the more traditional frog hopping .
Species
There are 14 recognized speciesSpecies
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
in the genus Kassina:
- Ivory Coast Running Frog, Kassina arboricolaKassina arboricolaKassina arboricola is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, and possibly Liberia.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marches, and heavily degraded former forest.It is threatened...
(Perret, 1985) - Silver Running Frog, Kassina cassinoidesKassina cassinoidesKassina cassinoides is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, possibly Benin, possibly Chad, possibly Guinea, possibly Guinea-Bissau, possibly Mauritania, possibly Niger, possibly Nigeria, possibly Senegal, and possibly...
(BoulengerGeorge Albert BoulengerGeorge Albert Boulenger FRS was a Belgian-British zoologist who identified over 2000 new animal species, chiefly fish, reptiles and amphibians.-Life:...
, 1903) - Cochran’s Running Frog, Kassina cochranaeKassina cochranaeKassina cochranae is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Ivory Coast, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, moist savanna, subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland, freshwater marshes, and...
(Loveridge, 1941) - Brown Running Frog, Kassina fuscaKassina fuscaKassina fusca is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, possibly Benin, possibly Gambia, possibly Guinea, possibly Guinea-Bissau, and possibly Togo....
(Schiøtz, 1967) - Kassina jozani Msuya et al., 2006
- Kuvangu Running Frog, Kassina kuvangensisKassina kuvangensisKassina kuvangensis is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Angola, Zambia, and possibly the Democratic Republic of the Congo....
(Monard, 1937) - RainforestRainforestRainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
Running Frog, Kassina lamotteiKassina lamotteiKassina lamottei is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Ivory Coast, possibly Guinea, and possibly Liberia.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and intermittent freshwater marshes....
(Schiøtz, 1967) - Red-legged Running Frog, Kassina maculataKassina maculataThe Red-legged running frog is a frog species of the Hyperoliidae family. They are silvery greyish-brown with dark brown to black spots, and derive their name from bright red coloring on the ventral side of their hind legs. Adult body length is typically 6 to 7.5 centimeters. These frogs have...
(DumérilAndré Marie Constant DumérilAndré Marie Constant Duméril was a French zoologist. He was professor of anatomy at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle from 1801 to 1812, when he became professor of herpetology and ichthyology...
, 1853) - Parker’s Running Frog, Kassina maculiferKassina maculiferKassina maculifer is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia.Its natural habitats are dry savanna, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, freshwater marshes, and intermittent freshwater marches....
(AhlErnst AhlChristoph Gustav Ernst Ahl was a German zoologist.He was the director of the department of ichthyology and herpetology in the Museum für Naturkunde....
, 1924) - Marbled Running Frog, Kassina maculosaKassina maculosaKassina maculosa is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, possibly Republic of the Congo, possibly Nigeria, and possibly Sudan....
(Sternfeld, 1917) - Mertens’ Running Frog, Kassina mertensiKassina mertensiKassina mertensi is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is endemic to Democratic Republic of the Congo.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, swamps, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marches, and heavily degraded...
(Laurent, 1952) - Schiøtz's Running Frog, Kassina schioetziKassina schioetziKassina schioetzi is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Ivory Coast, Guinea, possibly Burkina Faso, possibly Ghana, and possibly Liberia....
(Rödel, Grafe, Rudolf & Ernst, 2002) - SenegalSenegalSenegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
Running Frog, Kassina senegalensisKassina senegalensisKassina senegalensis is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger,...
(DumérilAndré Marie Constant DumérilAndré Marie Constant Duméril was a French zoologist. He was professor of anatomy at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle from 1801 to 1812, when he became professor of herpetology and ichthyology...
& BibronGabriel BibronGabriel Bibron was a French zoologist. He was born in Paris. Son of an employee of the Museum national d'histoire naturelle, he had a good foundation in natural history and was hired to collect vertebrates in Italy and Sicily. He classified a number of reptile species with André Marie Constant...
, 1841) - SomaliaSomaliaSomalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
n Running Frog, Kassina somalicaKassina somalicaKassina somalica is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family.It is found in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Tanzania.Its natural habitats are dry savanna, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, freshwater marshes, and intermittent freshwater marches.It is threatened by habitat...
(Scortecci, 1932)
In captivity
K. maculata is frequently exported from TanzaniaTanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
for the exotic pet
Pet
A pet is a household animal kept for companionship and a person's enjoyment, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful...
trade.
Research
It is the source of "Kassinin", a frequently studied tachykinin peptideTachykinin peptides
Tachykinin peptides are one of the largest family of neuropeptides, found from amphibians to mammals. They were so named due to their ability to rapidly induce contraction of gut tissue. The tachykinin family is characterized by a common C-terminal sequence, Phe-X-Gly-Leu-Met-NH2, where X is...
.