Axolotl-Trego

__**Axolotl **__  ﻿ By: Jack Trego     ﻿ ﻿ Kingdom- Animalia    ﻿ Phylum- Chordata    ﻿ Class- Amphibia    ﻿ Order-Caudata    ﻿ Family- Ambystomatidae    ﻿ Genus-Ambystoma    ﻿ Species- //A. mexicanum//

Introduction- ﻿The axolotl, commonly called the Mexican Walking Fish or the "ajolote", is a very interesting and exotic animal. It is neotenic, which means that it does not undergo metamorphosis, so adults remain aquatic and keep their gills and larval tail. They are also sold as pets in the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Japan, and other countries. They are sold under the name Wooper Looper. Axolotls are near extinction, due to the fact that Mexico City, where they live, is becoming more and more urban, and also because polluted waters in their habitat. Movement- ﻿ ﻿The axolotl moves by using its back legs and larval tail. Its front legs are used to steer itself. To move, the axolotl paddles with its tail and both of it rear legs. Food**-** The axolotl is at the top of the food chain in its environment. Axolotls will eat almost anything that they can catch. They will eat fish, insects, mollusks, worms, zooplankton, and other small animals. The axolotl is primarily carnivorous. To catch its food, the axolotl first smells to locate its prey. Then, when it comes close to it, it 'snaps' at its meal. It sucks the food into its stomach with vacuum force.

Growth and Development﻿- The axolotl grows to about twenty- three centimeters when it is a fully grown adult. Twenty- three centimeters is the most common length of an axolotl. The range of the sizes is from fifteen centimeters to forty- five centimeters. However, an axolotl that is thirty centimeters or above, is rare. ** ﻿ ** Adaptations- ﻿The first adaptation of the axolotl is that it can regrow lost limbs. So, if a larger fish attacks it or if something else happens to it that results in a lost limb, then it can grow it back. Another is that the axolotl can change from and aquatic animal to a land animal. Axolotls do not leave the water, unlike most salamanders. They breathe through their skin and three feathery gills, which are located on either side of its head. However, if it spends long periods of time in shallow water, their gills can become absorbed and they can begin using their lungs. If they are in deep water, and stay there, they will keep their gills.The axolotl is also neotenic, which menas that it is unable to metamorphosize from its larva stage into an adult. This is a very helpful thing, actually. Because of this, they retain their larval tail throughout their entire lives. This, along with four limbs, improves mobility in it awuatic environment. Reproduction- Gestation is one day. Baby axolotls are born none day after fertilization occurs. Typically, axolotls can have up to three hundred eggs at a time. The average is two hundred, and the range is from one hundred to three hundred. General Characteristics- Animals in the Caudata order have slender bodies. They also have long tails and four limbs. Females have wider bodies due to the many eggs inside of them. Males have a swollen cloacae lined with papillae. A cloacae is the only such opening for the intestinal, reproductive, and urinary tracts in certain animals. Four animals from this same order, Caudata, are the Mole Salamander, which is also included in the genus of the axolotl, the Torrent Salamander, the Alpine Newt, and the Pacific Giant Salamander. 