Human speech is not homologous to animal vocalizations, but these two different communication systems overlap in the area of expression of emotional arousal. The latter can be revealed in any mammalian vocal emissions: in human speech, in infant crying, and in calls of animals. Animals are able to perceive information about emotional arousal from human speech emissions and, in their turn, the humans are able to estimate emotional arousal from vocalizations of animals. Numerous studies conducted with many mammal species suggest the presence of vocal indicators of emotional arousal shared by the humans and nonhuman mammals. Here we appraise parameters used for description of call structures, overview fundamental studies constituting a framework for understanding the relationships between call structures and degrees of emotional arousal in mammals, and provide a synthesis of the available data allowing to establish integral vocal indicators of emotional arousal in the humans and nonhuman mammals.