Axolotl

Ambystoma mexicanum

The axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) is a fully aquatic salamander from the lake and canal system of Xochimilco in Mexico City, with the original Lake Chalco habitat largely lost. It is neotenic, meaning it keeps larval traits such as external feathery gills and a finned tail while becoming sexually mature. Wild axolotls are usually dark and mottled; captive lines include leucistic, albino, golden, melanoid, and other color forms common in the pet trade and laboratories.

Axolotls are popular aquarium animals, but they need cool, clean, well-cycled water rather than tropical fish conditions. Gravel is risky because swallowed stones can cause impaction, and handling should be rare because their skin and gills are delicate. They eat worms, soft sinking pellets, and other carnivorous foods, with juveniles requiring smaller live or prepared prey. Breeding can produce large numbers of larvae that need separate feeding and sorting. Wild populations are critically endangered, so captive pets should never be released; conservation depends on habitat restoration, water quality, and control of introduced fish.