Introduction
As a result of their cuteness and inclusion in Minecraft, a type of neotenic salamander called an axolotl has risen in popularity to become the second most sought-after pet in recent years. Axolotls are commonly kept as pets in the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Americas and can be found in various hues (called “morphs”).
However, locating wild axolotls is next to impossible because this severely endangered species is endemic to only a small area of Central Mexico. If axolotls were once common, why are they now critically endangered, and Where Do The Axolotls Live? Learn more by reading on!
From Whence Do Axolotls Originate?
The axolotl is native to and found only in Mexico. Although axolotls are amphibians and not fish, they have earned the moniker “the Mexican Walking Fish” due to their unique gait. It turns out that these salamanders are a rare species of amphibian known as a “neotenic” or “paedomorphic” salamander, which means they never complete the metamorphosis from the larval to the adult stage and instead spend their entire lives as salamander larvae.
This makes them one of the few truly aquatic salamanders, and their historical distribution was restricted to a set of interconnected lakes in the highlands of central Mexico. Several lakes were in the area, including Texcoco, Zumpango, Xaltocan, Xochimilco, and Chalco. There was no evolutionary pressure for these species to diversify to the point where they would need to inhabit other regions because of the abundance of food and nutrients in these lakes throughout history.
The Aztecs, the Mexica ancestors, established permanent settlements around the lakes in the 13th century. They established Tenochtitlán as the imperial capital on an island in Lake Texcoco. The Aztecs were master builders, and they extended their metropolis to the water’s edge by creating a network of canals and artificial islands (called chinampas) to grow food for their populace. As a side effect, this dramatically increased the length of the lakes’ shorelines, making it easier for axolotls to find suitable habitats, leading to a fast increase in the species’ population and subsequent recognition as an important cultural symbol among the Aztecs.
The Aztecs And Axolotls
The axolotl was first identified, named, and domesticated by the Aztecs. The Aztecs first used the word “axolotl” in their language, Nahuatl. It is pronounced “Ak-Suh-Lot-Uhl” by most English speakers but “Ah-Hoh-Loh-Tey” in Spanish. But “Ah-Shoh-Loat” is how it’s pronounced in Nahuatl.
The axolotl was a vital part of Aztec and subsequent Mexican civilization, serving as a mainstay of the diet for hundreds of years. Spanish Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagn, who wrote one of the earliest anthropological books about the Aztecs, called axolotl “food for the lords” and compared its texture and flavor to that of eel in Florentine Codex Book 11. Axolotls were eaten in tamales and thrown by youngsters into fireplaces as part of the Izcalli festival, which honored renewal and expansion.
Book 7 of the Florentine Codex depicts the axolotl alongside two other sacred meals in a creation narrative involving the god Xolotl, after whom the axolotl is named. After creating the Fifth Sun, the Aztec gods swiftly learned that it did not move, as told in the legend. Without the Sun’s rotation, life on Earth would be impossible. The gods ultimately resolved to kill themselves to get the Sun to rise. Xolotl’s role was to be the gods’ executioner; after slaying them all, he would sacrifice himself.
Xolotl does the right thing and kills himself at the end of the narrative in some tellings. However, in other, more well-known interpretations of the myth, he is devastated by the prospect of death and sobs uncontrollably until his eyes fall out. Next, he changes into three holy meals to avoid being sacrificed. He starts as a maize plant, then morphs into an agave, and finally an axolotl. Unfortunately, his deception is exposed, and his twin, the god Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl, sacrifices him.
The Axolotl’s Rapid Decline
The Spanish conquistadors headed by Hernán Cortés began their conquest of the Aztecs and the fall of Tenochtitlán in 1521, marking the beginning of the downfall of the axolotl population. After the Aztec metropolis was destroyed by Cortés and his soldiers, Mexico metropolis was founded there. After the Spanish conquest, the Aztecs’ sophisticated hydraulic structures for controlling floods and other water hazards were destroyed and never repaired. Therefore, flooding quickly became an extremely serious issue for the brand-new city.
The technique proposed to reduce floods will have devastating consequences for local axolotl populations. The residents of Mexico City began emptying Lake Texcoco in the 1600s and continued the process into the 1900s. The construction of the Drenaje Profundo (“Deep Drainage System”) was the most extensive tunnel and channel project. A network of tunnels built hundreds of kilometers below the lake drained the water from the basin using this method.
The draining has turned most of the territory around Mexico City into a semiarid wasteland, and the city’s water supply has been severely compromised. Small vestiges of Lakes Xochimilco, Chalco, and Zumpango remain, and Lake Texcoco exists today only as an area surrounded by salt marshes that cover the lake bed. The axolotl population, along with those of many other native species, has declined drastically due to the severe destruction of its natural environment.
Wild axolotls have several threats to their health and lifespan, and it’s not only pollution and habitat loss. To help feed the growing population, Chinese carp, and African tilapia were introduced to Lake Xochimilco in the 1970s. However, due to years of treated water being pumped into surrounding canals and raw sewage pouring directly into the lake from illegal buildings on the chinampas, the waters of Lake Xochimilco have become extremely polluted with heavy metals.
Since tilapia and carp are no longer harvested for human consumption, their numbers have skyrocketed. Successful reproduction is extremely challenging for axolotls since carp and tilapia outcompete them for scarce food supplies and devour axolotl eggs and juveniles. Therefore, up to a thousand wild axolotls are believed to be left.
How You Can Assist In Efforts To Preserve Axolotls
The wild population of axolotls that survives in what’s left of Lake Xochimilco is the focus of numerous conservation initiatives today. The axolotl’s native environment has been degraded for far too long, and most of these initiatives focus on increasing awareness and striving to restore it. Axolotls were very close to extinction, but thankfully, there is a lot of interest in saving them and returning them to their natural environments.
Richard Griffiths, a professor of biological conservation at the University of Kent, is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost authorities on axolotl conservation. Through the Darwin Initiative, Griffiths and his group have implemented a plan to educate the public about the condition of axolotls through classroom presentations, seminars, and town hall meetings. As a result of the success of this program, further initiatives have been developed.
Luis Zambrano, a biologist at Mexico’s National Autonomous University (UNAM), is another prominent researcher at the forefront of attempts to rescue native axolotls by restoring their natural habitats. Zambrano has been tracking the axolotl population for quite some time.
He has successfully rallied the locals to his cause, and many farmers around Lake Xochimilco have begun using chinampas and other traditional agricultural farming techniques to establish axolotl refuges. These conventional agricultural practices help protect Lake Xochimilco’s delicate ecosystem by eliminating the need for pollution-causing fertilizers and pesticides.
What steps can you take to ensure the survival of the axolotl? Well, restoring their native habitat is the single most important thing that can be done to ensure the survival of axolotls. Their original homelands have lost 98% of their water supply. The greatest way to contribute is to donate to and volunteer with programs and groups working to restore Lake Xochimilco’s wetlands.
You may volunteer at a place like Humedalia and learn about animal husbandry, organic farming, and restoring ecosystems, all while living outdoors. Humedalia collaborates closely with UNAM and UAM in pursuing genuine sustainable development techniques, particularly in creating chinampas to benefit the local environment and population.
Conclusion
Axolotls are in a grave state of endangerment for various causes, and saving them presents significant challenges. Getting to the point where the axolotl is no longer an endangered species will take much time and work from scientists, residents, and the Mexican government. Now that you know more about the axolotl and its plight, we hope you’ll do all you can to spread the word and ensure the species’ survival.
