Xolotl was a dog-headed god from Aztec mythology. They apparently taste like white fish meat, but with a crunch. A restaurant in Osaka serves whole axolotls, deep-fried. Today, you can still taste one of these creatures-but you might have to travel to Japan to do it. It is thought to be particularly useful in cases of consumption.” In 1787, Francesco Clavigero wrote that, "the axolotl is wholesome to eat, and is of much the same taste with an eel. Axolotl tamales were a favorite, served whole with cornmeal. You can eat them.īefore the axolotl was an endangered species, Xochimilco natives would chow down on the salamanders. And although it's not ideal, even if the elusive animal disappears from the wild entirely, the species continues to thrive in captivity. Luckily, some have since been found roaming the water.
![chimera axolotl chimera axolotl](https://www.zooplus.co.uk/magazine/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/axolotl-UK.jpg)
For a brief amount of time in 2014, biologists failed to find a single water dog, and feared the salamanders had gone extinct in the wild. There were about 6000 wild axolotls documented in a 1998 survey, but today, researchers are lucky to find any. Unfortunately, the numbers continue to decline. In an attempt to revive the species, researchers have built “shelters” made from reeds and rocks to filter the water and create a more desirable living space. They’re critically endangered.Īs a result of habitat loss, pollution, and the introduction of invasive species like tilapia and carp, these salamanders are being pushed closer and closer to extinction. The axolotl eats small fish, worms, and anything it can find that will fit in its mouth. The animals can only be found in the lakes and canals of Xochimilco, Mexico. While you can find axolotls in aquariums and laboratories all over the world, it’s much harder to find them in the wild. Wild ones can only be found in one place. The filaments attached to the long gills increase surface area for gas exchange. The impossibly silly branches that grow from the axolotl’s head might not seem practical, but they’re actually the salamander’s gills. Their feathery headdress is not just for show. They were then specially bred to be white with black eyes (different from albinos, which generally have red eyes). White ones are known as “leucistic” and descend from a mutant male that was shipped to Paris in 1863. While you might see plenty of white ones in captivity, the animal is normally greenish brown or black. Phonetically, it’s “Ax-oh-lot-ul.” Atl means "water" and xolotl means "dog," after the Xolotl, the canine Aztec deity. Don’t worry, we’ll help you pronounce it. Axolotls in the lab have reduced pigmentation and end up being a lighter pink color, while axolotls that live in nature are a darker, brown to black color.With big branch-like gills, lizard-like limbs, and a cute perma-smile, it’s hard not to fall in love with the axolotl. This is an example of neoteny, a type of heterochrony. So, it ends up as an adult which looks like a larva, except that it is sexually mature. A mutation in hormone production slows the development of the non-sexual tissues compared to the gonads. Genetics and development Ĭompared with land-dwelling salamanders, the sexually mature adult Axolotl is a chimera (~ mixture) of larval and adult tissues. The axolotl is currently on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. These new fish have been eating the axolotls' young, as well as its primary source of food. Non-native fish, such as African tilapia and Asian carp, have also recently been introduced to the waters. Wild axolotls are now near extinction due to population growth in Mexico City, and the polluted waters of the lake.
![chimera axolotl chimera axolotl](https://coolwoodwildlifepark.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Types-Of-Axolotl.jpg)
The mudpuppies, Necturus, are fully-aquatic salamanders which are not closely related to the axolotl but bear a superficial resemblance. These are common in much of North America and also sometimes become neotenic. Axolotls are closely related to waterdogs, the larval stage of the closely related Tiger salamanders Ambystoma tigrinum and Ambystoma mavortium.