Amietia ruwenzorica
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Pyxicephalidae
Genus: Amietia
Species:
A. ruwenzorica
Binomial name
Amietia ruwenzorica
(Laurent, 1972)
Synonyms[2]
  • Rana ruwenzorica Laurent, 1972
  • Afrana ruwenzorica (Laurent, 1972)

Amietia ruwenzorica (Ruwenzori Range frog or Ruwenzori river frog) is a species of frog in the family Pyxicephalidae. It is found in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and western Uganda, including the eponymous Rwenzori Mountains on the Uganda/DRC border as well as Kabobo Plateau and Itombwe Mountains in DRC.[1][2]

Description

Adult males can grow to 71 mm (2.8 in) and adult females to 86 mm (3.4 in) in snout–vent length. The toes are partially webbed. Skin is smooth in females and spiny in males. The supratympanic fold is nearly straight. The dorsolateral ridges are narrow and distinct. The dorsum is pale tan with irregular small dark brown marks. The dorsolateral folds are marked by narrow longitudinal marks. The nostril is surrounded by a dark spot that extends as a thin line to the eye, encloses the dark tympanum, and finally tapers to the arm insertion. The limbs have narrow dark crossbars. The ventral surfaces are white to yellow; brown mottling is sometimes present.[3]

A tadpole in Gosner stage 34 measures 57 mm (2.2 in) in total length, two thirds of which is tail. The body is streamlined, with the oral disc forming a wide sucker.[3]

Habitat and conservation

Amietia ruwenzorica occurs in submontane and montane rainforests at elevations of 700–2,500 m (2,300–8,200 ft) above sea level. It lives in and around streams, it breeding habitat. Reproduction takes place in the dry season.[1]

This species is threatened by the general decline in the quality and extent of its habitat, caused by expanding human settlements, wood collection and logging, and agricultural expansion. Artisanal mining could be a threat in some areas where this species is suspected to occur. It occurs in several protected areas: Virunga National Park, Itombwe Nature Reserve, and Kabobo Natural Reserve in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwenzori Mountains National Park in Uganda.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2020). "Amietia ruwenzorica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T58189A175797273. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T58189A175797273.en. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Amietia ruwenzorica (Laurent, 1972)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
  3. 1 2 Channing, A.; Dehling, J.M.; Lötters, S. & Ernst, R. (2016). "Species boundaries and taxonomy of the African river frogs (Amphibia: Pyxicephalidae: Amietia)". Zootaxa. 4155 (1): 1–76. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4155.1.1. PMID 27615865.
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