Kassina
| Kassina | |
|---|---|
 | |
| red-legged running frog Kassina maculata | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Hyperoliidae |
| Genus: | Kassina Girard, 1853 |
Kassina is a genus of hyperoliid frogs, 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.[1]
Species
There are about 14 recognized species in the genus Kassina:
- Kassina arboricola (Perret, 1985) - Ivory Coast running frog
- Kassina cassinoides (Boulenger, 1903) - silver running frog
- Kassina cochranae (Loveridge, 1941) - Cochran's running frog
- Kassina fusca (Schiøtz, 1967) - brown running frog
- Kassina jozani (Msuya et al., 2006)
- Kassina kuvangensis (Monard, 1937) - Kuvangu running frog
- Kassina lamottei (Schiøtz, 1967) - rainforest running frog
- Kassina maculata (Duméril, 1853) - red-legged running frog
- Kassina maculifer (Ahl, 1924) - Parker's running frog
- Kassina maculosa (Sternfeld, 1917) - marbled running frog
- Kassina mertensi (Laurent, 1952) - Mertens' running frog
- Kassina schioetzi (Rödel, et al., 2002) - Schiøtz's running frog
- Kassina senegalensis (Duméril & Bibron, 1841) - Senegal running frog
- Kassina somalica (Scortecci, 1932) - Somalian running frog
In captivity
K. maculata is frequently exported from Tanzania for the exotic pet trade.
Research
It is the source of "kassinin", a frequently studied tachykinin peptide.
References
- "Kassina". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 17 July 2006.
External links
- Grace R, Lynn A, Cowsik S (2001). "Lipid induced conformation of the tachykinin peptide Kassinin.". J Biomol Struct Dyn 18 (4): 611–21, 623–5. doi:10.1080/07391102.2001.10506693. PMID 11245256.
- Perfumi M, de Caro G, Panocka I, Polidori C, Massi M (1988). "Effects of kassinin, a tachykinin of the skin of the African frog Kassina senegalensis, on body fluid homeostasis in rats.". Pharmacol Res Commun. 20. Suppl 5: 67–70. PMID 3247356.
- Kassinin at the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
- Amphibian Species of the World: Kassina