It's an amphibian and also a type of salamander that do't go through metamorphosis, meaning they keep their frilly external gills and oyster juvenile features and stay living in the water for their whole lifecycle. Axolotls are native to lakes and wetlands in southern Mexico City, particularly Lake Xochimilco and Lake Chalco. There’s also a large captive population of axolotls. They’re often found in zoos, labs and kept as pets. Wild axolotls are a mottled brown-grey colour, but they can also be albinos. These are missing brown pigments and look pinkish-white. This attractive colouration is desirable in the pet trade and has been selectively bred for. Axolotls are often the top predators in their native habitats. They eat whatever they can get their jaws on, including molluscs, worms, insect larvae, crustaceans and even some small fish. Axolotls can live 10-15 years in the wild, reaching sexual maturity after about a year. Given their primary habitat is so diminished, it’s no surprise that axolotls are listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as Critically Endangered.
