Warty Toothed Toad

The male is 47 mm long and the female is 50 mm long. This species has vertical pupils. It lacks a visible tympanum. The upper maxillary is developed. The back is full of spiny tubercles of varying sizes, encircled by black. Back legs are relatively long, with the tibiotarsal articulation extending to the eye. The femoral gland is large and prominent. Digit tips are rounded. The sides of the toe are fringed. The fourth toe is weakly or 1/3 webbed. Dorsal coloration is yellowish brown or light grayish palm. The ventrum of the female is completely spotted with grayish palm, which is not obvious in the male. Limb banding is indistinct. Relatively small spines are present on the backs of the upper arm. The male has thin and dense nuptial spines on the first and second fingers. A pair of small, closely spaced clusters of spines is also present on the chest. The tadpole is 67 mm in body length and 26 mm in head length. The tail is black, with a rusty, cloudy mark on the upper part of the caudal fin. In the corners of the mouth there are many additional papillae, often possessing small teeth (Fei 1999).

O. rugosus inhabits southern Sichuan and northern Yunnan, between 1800 and 3300 m above sea level, with an apparently small population (IUCN 2006)[3767]. It is found in mountainous regions, associated with small streams (Fei 1999).

These toads are primarily terrestrial. During a ten-day period between the middle of April and May, adults breed under rocks in the stream or along the stream, in crevices formed by tree roots. The eggs are stuck to the undersides of rocks. The animal pole of the egg is gray. The tadpoles live in ponds or in the stream in between the cracks in the rocks. They are able to swim against the current (Fei 1999).

The major threat is the habitat loss that has resulted from clear-cutting and agricultural expansion. Populations are expected to continue declining (IUCN 2006).

Oreolalax rugosus (Chaochiao lazy toad or warty toothed toad) is a species of amphibian in the family Megophryidae. It is endemic to China where it can be found in the Hengduan Mountains in southern Sichuan and northern Yunnan provinces. Its natural habitats are subtropical moist montane forests and rivers. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Male Oreolalax rugosus grow to about 47 mm (1.9 in) in snout-vent length and females to about 50 mm (2.0 in). Tadpoles are 67 mm (2.6 in) in length.