The mating calls of 12 species and sub‐species of the genus Xenopus (Amphibia : Anura)

The principal acoustic characteristics of the mating calls of 12 species and sub‐species of the genus Xenopus were determined: X. laevis laevis, X. laevis petersi, X. laevis victorianus, X. gilli, X. muelleri, X. borealis, X. clivii, X. fraseri, X. ruwenzoriensis, X. wittei, X. vestitus and X. tropicalis. These calls are very specific, especially among species whose hybrids are particularly viable in the laboratory. Twin species have not been discovered. Most of the species emit calls with high harmonic frequencies of 16 kHz; these frequencies reach 80 and 150 kHz in X. I. laevis and X. ruwenzoriensis, the ultra‐sound level. This was a previously unknown phenomenon in the Batrachians.