Alasse

Some pics of my axolotls

Delilah ~ female




Sam ~ female






This one shows their tank

seedy

Thanks Alasse
Very cool .
I have a wild type and gold also . Great minds think alike ..lol
Seedy

Lucy

They're so freaky looking! Thanks for sharing the pics.

Wilhelm Joshua Tan

Nice photos! How much does those axolotls cost? May you pls. translate it in Philippine Pesos and it is nice to keep a axolotl. I used to keep a fire-bellied newt. I cost more than 100 pesos.

Allie

Nice pix, weird fish. I have seen them at our lfs here.

pinkfloydpuffer

Those fish are so cool!

Coryd55

They aren't fish. They are an amphibian; just about any species of the family Ambystoma caught in the middle of metamorphosis. The most common is the Tiger Salamander though.

Its called paedomorphosis. They basically are born aquatic and stay that way unless it is necessary to fully metamorph, then they lose their external gills and develop lungs. An example would be if the habitat they were in dried out, they would have to deelop lungs so they didn't die.

Zoology lesson for the day! We just studied amphibians.

They are very neat creatures though! Nice looking ones that you have!

Cory

sirdarksol

They're also one of the few animals that breeds prior to their final form.

The non-albino one is absolutely beautiful. I've never seen one before.

turtleman1589

Nice looking animals they look like sirens, which are very cool also, good pictures.

Coryd55

Sirens have the same appeareance except they do not have hind limbs.

Wilhelm Joshua Tan

Actually since I am good at animals, They will never turn into land-dwelling animals. Axolotls will stay aquatic forever til they die.

Red wag platy

Actually axolotls are a different species from tiger sals, they are both related and can interbreed with eachother, but they're different species. They are neotenic, rather than phaedomorphic. Years and years ago one kept its larval form and over the years prospered. They almost never morph, except on very rare situations, which are sometimes due to the admission of horomones in some lab. They don't cost much if you know where to get them. Some petshops and other places will try to sell them for alot of money, but alot of experienced breeders will charge alot less money. Probably $25 and under in U.S. dollars. Sometimes they'll even give them away for free. They breed like crazy! I don't konw of any breeders in the Phillipines, but some petshops around there might have them.

sirdarksol

Cory's right. These guys do have a terrestrial form that's meant to save them when the lake bed dries up. If they are in a slowly-lowering water-level, some will metamorphose, thus allowing them to survive and breed when the water comes back. If they didn't have this ability, there would be no axolotls.

Red wag platy

This may be the truth in the wild, it is not the case in captivity. If you try to lower the water level or provide adverse water conditions in order for them to morph into a terrestrial form, they will probably die. And also, they aren't any species of Ambystoma. Axolotls are specifically Ambystoma mexicanum. Tiger salamanders are Ambystoma mavortium.

Coryd55

Like I said earlier it is most any species of ambystoma. The tiger salamander I am referring to is Ambystoma tigrinum and through paedomorphosis it is referred to as an Axolotl - A. mavortium is neotonic as well though. Now the technical Axolotl, A. mexicanum, is fully aquatic. But there are other species, that when in a paedomorphic state are referred to as Axolotls.

There are many other Ambystoma species that are endure paedomorphosis(essentially the same thing). A. taylori, A. tigrinum, A. velasci, A. dumerilii, and many others. These will, under conditions, complete metamorphosis and become terrestrial adults.

Cory

P.S. All of my information was out of a Zoology Textbook and from a Biologist.

I forgot to add in my earlier post that all species classified as axolotls reproduce neotonically.

Septhen

Actually in France I think they accidentally forgot about their axolotl and its water slowly dried up or something IN CAPTIVITY. The owners came back to see their post-axolotls became salamanders.

sirdarksol

Again, not quite right. Adverse water conditions will kill them, but if you slowly lower the water level and keep the water very clean, there is a chance that they will morph. This has occurred in both hobby and research settings.
It's not something that's suggested, because only a small number of them will actually morph (still enough to keep the species alive if their lake dries up), but that doesn't mean it can't happen. It just means it's not a good idea.

As for the species, if their name is Ambystoma Mexicanum, then yes, they are part of the Ambystoma species. That's how the Latin naming system works.