Amolops ricketti

Amolops ricketti
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Anura
Family:	Ranidae
Genus:	Amolops
Species:	A. ricketti
Binomial name
Amolops ricketti (Boulenger, 1899)
Synonyms
Rana ricketti Boulenger, 1899 Rhacophorus tonkinensis Ahl, 1926 Staurois ricketti ssp. minor Liu, 1950

Amolops ricketti (Chinese sucker frog or South China torrent frog) is a species of frog in the Ranidae family that is found in southern and eastern China and northern and central montane Vietnam.^[2]

George Albert Boulenger described Amolops ricketti based on two specimens collected by Irish ornithologist John D. La Touche in Guadun village in Wuyishan, Fujian, China. The specific name honours Mr. C. B. Rickett,^[3] a British ornithologist active in China.^[4]

Amolops ricketti is a small frog, males measuring about 56 mm (2.2 in) and females about 58 mm (2.3 in) in snout-vent length. Tadpoles are about 36 mm (1.4 in) in length.^[5] Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, and rivers. It is not considered threatened by the IUCN.^[1]

Antimicrobial peptides that are candidates for developing novel anti-infection agents can be extracted from the skin secretions of Amolops ricketti.^[6]

References

1. van Dijk, P.P., Bain. R., Lau, M.W.N., Zhao Ermi, Gu Huiqing (2004). "Amolops ricketti". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.1. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
2. Frost, Darrel R. (2013). "Amolops ricketti (Boulenger, 1899)". Amphibian Species of the World 5.6, an Online Reference. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
3. Boulenger, George A. (1899). "On a collection of reptiles and batrachians made by Mr. J. D. La Touche in N.W. Fokien, China". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1899: 159–172.
4. Kinnear, N. B. (1944). "Mr. C. B. Rickett". Nature 153 (3892): 677. doi:10.1038/153677b0.
5. Fei, L. (1999). Atlas of Amphibians of China (in Chinese). Zhengzhou: Henan Press of Science and Technology. p. 242. ISBN 7-5349-1835-9.
6. Wang, H.; Ran, R.; Yu, H.; Yu, Z.; Hu, Y.; Zheng, H.; Wang, D.; Yang, F.; Liu, R.; Liu, J. (2012). "Identification and characterization of antimicrobial peptides from skin of Amolops ricketti (Anura: Ranidae)". Peptides 33 (1): 27–34. doi:10.1016/j.peptides.2011.10.030. PMID 22100518.