Axolotl

Common Name: Axolotls

Scientific Name: Ambystoma mexicanum
Type: Amphibians
Diet: Carnivore
Average Life Span in The Wild: 10 to 15 years
Size: Up to 12 inches
Weight: 2.11 to 8 ounces
Size relative to a teacup:

What is an axolotl?
As legend has it, the axolotl is the Aztec god of fire and lightning, Xolotl, which
disguised himself as a salamander to avoid being sacrificed. But these Mexican
amphibians are impressive enough on their own, with the ability to regenerate
lost limbs and stay “young” throughout their lives.

Unlike other salamanders that undergo metamorphosis, axolotls never outgrow

their larval, juvenile stage, a phenomenon called neoteny.

Conservation
A 2019 assessment by the International Union for the Conservation of Species
found only between 50 and a thousand axolotls are left in the wild—and their
populations are dropping.

Development for tourism and residential housing, in addition to agricultural and

industrial pollution, has drastically reduced the species’ population.

So has the introduction of tilapia and other invasive fish, which eat baby
salamanders and compete with adults for food.

The Mexican government, as well as many nonprofits, are trying to save

axolotls, in part by restoring parts of their freshwater habitat and offering
ecotourism for people to see the quirky salamanders in the wild.

For instance, scientists and farmers are working together to create chinampas
(in Xochimilco and Tláhuac), floating islands made of water plants, logs, and
lake mud that help filter the polluted water.