Editing African clawed frog (section)

== Description ==
[[File:Xenopus laevis froglet swimming -1749-8104-7-13-S10.ogv|thumb|A ''Xenopus laevis'' froglet after metamorphosis.]]
These frogs are plentiful in ponds and rivers within the south-eastern portion of Sub-Saharan Africa.  They are aquatic and are often a mottled greenish-grey-brown in color, sometimes with yellowish botches, and with a pale white-cream belly. African clawed frogs have been frequently sold as pets, and are sometimes misidentified as [[African dwarf frog]]s. [[Albinism|Albino]] clawed frogs are common and sold as [[Animal testing|animals for laboratories]].

Amphibians reproduce by fertilizing eggs outside of the female's body (see [[Frog#Reproduction|frog reproduction]]). Of the seven [[amplexus]] modes (positions in which frogs mate), these frogs are found breeding in inguinal amplexus, where the male clasps the female in front of the female's back legs until eggs are laid, and the male fertilizes the egg mass with the release of sperm.

African clawed frogs are highly adaptable and will lay their eggs whenever conditions allow it. During wet rainy seasons they will travel to other ponds or puddles of water to search for food and new ponds.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Maddin HC, Eckhart L, Jaeger K, Russell AP, Ghannadan M |title=The anatomy and development of the claws of ''Xenopus laevis'' (Lissamphibia: Anura) reveal alternate pathways of structural evolution in the integument of tetrapods |journal=Journal of Anatomy |volume=214 |issue=4 |pages=607–19 |date=April 2009  |pmid=19422431 |pmc=2736125 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7580.2009.01052.x}}</ref> During times of drought, the clawed frogs can burrow themselves into the mud, becoming dormant for up to a year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/african-clawed-frog |title=African clawed frog |date=25 April 2016 |publisher=Smithsonian's National ZOo|access-date=7 May 2019}}</ref>

''Xenopus laevis'' have been known to survive 15 or more years in the wild and 25–30 years in captivity.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.laboratoryxenopus.com/frogfacts.html|title=Sherril Green, DMV, PhD, Author The Laboratory ''Xenopus'' sp|website=www.laboratoryxenopus.com}}</ref> They shed their skin every season, and eat their own shed skin.

Although lacking a [[vocal sac]], the males make a [[mating call]] of alternating long and short trills, by contracting the intrinsic [[Larynx|laryngeal muscles]].  Females also answer vocally, signaling either acceptance (a rapping sound) or rejection (slow ticking) of the male.<ref>{{cite web|last=Garvey |first=Nathan |url=http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Xenopus_laevis.html |title=ADW: ''Xenopus Laevis'': Information |publisher=Animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu |access-date=8 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author =Talk of the Nation |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123651128 |title=ADW: NPR: Listening To Love Songs of African Clawed Frogs |newspaper = NPR.org|publisher=NPR |access-date=8 June 2013}}</ref>  This frog has smooth, slippery skin which is multicolored on its back with blotches of olive gray or brown. The underside is creamy white with a yellow tinge.

Male and female frogs can be easily distinguished through the following differences. Male frogs are small and slim, while females are larger and more rotund. Males have black patches on their hands and arms which aid in grabbing onto females during amplexus. Females have a more pronounced cloaca and have hip-like bulges above their rear legs where their eggs are internally located.
[[File:ClawedFrogFloating.jpg|thumb|Captive male albino clawed frog in typical floating position with only the eyes and nose sticking out. Note the black hands and forearms used to hold onto the female during [[amplexus]].]]
Both males and females have a [[cloaca]], which is a chamber through which digestive and urinary wastes pass and through which the [[reproductive system]]s also empty. The cloaca empties by way of the vent which in [[reptile]]s and amphibians is a single opening for all three systems.<ref>{{cite book |first=John L. |last=Behler |author2=National Audubon Society |title=National Audubon Society field guide to North American reptiles and amphibians |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |edition=24th Printing |date=2008 |orig-date=1979 |isbn=978-0-394-50824-5 |pages=701, 704 |oclc=232992276}}</ref>