# African clawed frog (*Xenopus laevis*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-clawed-frog  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) is an amphibian in the frogs and toads subgroup, belonging to the family Pipidae and the subfamily Dactylethrinae within the order Anura. It is a small frog with an adult body mass of 130 g and a body length of up to 14.7 cm. This nocturnal carnivore feeds on arthropods and vertebrates, and its microhabitats are listed as aquatic, arboreal and terrestrial. It lays eggs, with 9,750 eggs per clutch as a representative value and from 2,500 to 17,000 reported, and it develops through a larval stage.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 130 g |
| Length | up to 14.7 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 30.3 years |
| Main food | arthropods, vertebrates |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2,500 – 17,000 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Aquatic |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Amphibia
- order: Anura
- family: Pipidae
- genus: Xenopus
- species: *Xenopus laevis* (Daudin, 1802)

Synonyms: *Bufo laevis*, *Dactylethera boiei*, *Dactylethera laevis*, *Dactylethra bufonia*, *Dactylethra capensis*, *Dactylethra delalandii*, *Dactylethra laevis*, *Dactylethra levis*, *Engystoma laevis*, *Leptopus boiei*, *Leptopus oxydactylus*, *Pipa africana*, *Pipa bufonia*, *Pipa laevis*, *Tremeropugus typicus*, *Xenopus boiei*, *Xenopus bojei*, *Xenopus laevis laevis*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the African clawed frog?

The African clawed frog is an amphibian in the frogs and toads subgroup, classified in the order Anura and the family Pipidae.

### How big is the African clawed frog?

It is a small frog with an adult body mass of 130 g and a body length of up to 14.7 cm.

### What does the African clawed frog eat?

It is a carnivore whose main foods are arthropods and vertebrates.

### Is the African clawed frog endangered?

No. It is listed as Least Concern (LC) in the global IUCN Red List assessment, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the African clawed frog live?

Our sources report a lifespan of up to 30.3 years.

### How many eggs does the African clawed frog lay?

It lays 9,750 eggs per clutch as a representative value, with reported clutches from 2,500 to 17,000 eggs.

### Who named the African clawed frog?

Its scientific name, Xenopus laevis, is attributed to (Daudin, 1802).

## Sources

- [AmphiBIO, a global database for amphibian ecological traits](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.4644424.v5), CC BY 4.0, v1. Oliveira, B.F., São-Pedro, V.A., Santos-Barrera, G., Penone, C. & Costa, G.C. (2017) AmphiBIO, a global database for amphibian ecological traits. Scientific Data 4: 170123. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.123. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.4644424.v5
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-clawed-frog