Xenopus laevis lives in warm, stagnant grassland ponds as well as in streams in arid and semi-arid regions. The ponds are usually devoid of any higher plant vegetation, and covered in green algae. Xenopus laevis can tolerate wide variation in water pH, but the presence of metal ions proves toxic. It thrives in temperatures from 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. It is almost totally aquatic, only leaving the water when forced to migrate.

(Nieuwkoop and Faber, 1994; Beck, 1994; Kaplan, 1995, Jack Crayon, personal communication)

Habitat Regions: temperate ; tropical ; freshwater

Aquatic Biomes: lakes and ponds; rivers and streams