Axolotl: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Wild Mix · day 2 of 7

Five facts

1. The axolotl never really grows up. Unlike most amphibians, it keeps its feathery gills and stays in the water even as an adult.
2. Lose a leg or a tail? No problem: an axolotl can regrow it in a few months, without a scar. It can even rebuild parts of its heart and eyes.
3. Its genetic code is about ten times longer than a human's. When it was read in 2018, it was the largest animal genome ever completed.
4. It sniffs out worms, insects and small fish, then snaps and sucks its meal in like a tiny vacuum cleaner.
5. Its name comes from Nahuatl, the Aztec language. It has been translated in many ways, from "water sprite" to "water dog".

The quiz

1. What does an adult axolotl keep that most amphibians lose?

• Its tadpole teeth
• Its gills (correct)
• Its egg shell
• Its see-through skin

It holds on to its gills and spends its whole life in water.

2. What happens when an axolotl loses a leg?

• It grows the whole leg back (correct)
• It walks on three legs forever
• It grows a fin instead
• It leaves a thick scar

Lost limbs and tails can regrow over a few months, with no scar.

3. How does the axolotl's genome compare with a human's?

• It is half the size
• It is exactly the same size
• It is about ten times bigger (correct)
• It is a hundred times smaller

Its genome is roughly ten times larger than ours.

4. How does an axolotl find its food?

• By echolocation
• By feeling heat
• By watching from the shore
• By smell (correct)

Axolotls locate food by smell, then suck it in.

5. Which language does the word axolotl come from?

• Latin
• Spanish
• Nahuatl, the Aztec language (correct)
• Ancient Greek

Axolotl is a Nahuatl word, often translated as water sprite or water dog.

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