Xenopus tropicalis (Gray, 1864)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The western clawed frog (Xenopus tropicalis) is a species of frog in the family Pipidae, also known as tropical clawed frog. It is the only species in the genus Xenopus to have a diploid genome. Its genome has been sequenced, making it a significant model organism for genetics that complements the related species Xenopus laevis (the African clawed frog), a widely used vertebrate model for developmental biology. X. tropicalis also has a number of advantages over X. laevis in research, such as a much shorter generation time (<5 months), smaller size (4–6 cm (1.6–2.4 in) body length), and a larger number of eggs per spawn.
It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, and possibly Mali. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, moist savanna, rivers, intermittent rivers, swamps, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, rural gardens, heavily degraded former forests, water storage areas, ponds, aquaculture ponds, and canals and ditches.
Wikipedia contributors, Western clawed frog; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T18:55:09.555260+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Xenopus tropicalis (Gray, 1864)
- Name authority
- (Gray, 1864)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Amphibia
- Order
- Anura
- Family
- Pipidae
- Genus
- Xenopus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAmphibia
- orderAnura
- familyPipidae Gray, 1825
- subfamilyDactylethrinae Hogg, 1838
- genusXenopus Wagler, 1827
- speciesXenopus tropicalis (Gray, 1864)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Xenopus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Silurana intertropicalis Gray, 1864 Gray, 1864 | synonym |
| Silurana tropicalis Gray, 1864 Gray, 1864 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=1097472 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:5CBCN. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.