Axolotl???

[Magnum Man]

been off & on thinking about these, for a while now... but I have never had one before... are they a pet you can handle, or because of their external gills, should they be treated more like a fish???
I've seen some varieties that glow in the dark... assuming that is a natural thing, not pets caught in the output cooling water at the nuclear power plant
sounds like they can often ingest substrate, so gravel should be avoided... wondering if they use some sort of mat that sits on the bottom of the tanks... some of the pictures I've seen didn't look like they were on a plain glass bottom???
If you have one, what size tank??? I was thinking maybe a 20 gallon long would be good... are you fine, with an open top, on a half or 3/4 full tank, or would a screen top, like used for reptiles be better

 

[Colin_T]

No you can't handle them.
They grow to 12 inches plus in length so a 3 foot tank or bigger is needed.
Some of them do eat gravel so sand or a bare bottom tank is best. I prefer sand.
Tank can be filled up like it is for fish. A cover of some sort always helps reduce the chance of them going awol but they don't normally try to get out and aren't jumpers.
They don't naturally glow.
They are virtually blind and smell their food. They eat most meat based foods including prawn, fish, bloodworms, brineshrimp, etc.
Have some live plants in the tank with them.
Males get a swelling between the back legs when they come into breeding condition. This normally occurs after they have been kept in cold water for a few months and the water warms up in spring.

 

[Magnum Man]

I've seen these listed ( GFP's ) from a couple different sellers, "(GFP is the short for green fluorescent protein which means it glows in the dark)" ... so does anyone know if this is this a cross between glo fish technology, & painted glass fish, or something natural, like Fireflys???

GFP Copper Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum)

The Axolotl is a fascinating and unusual aquatic amphibian originating from the waterways surrounding Mexico City, where it is now considered

www.aqua-imports.com

Wild GFP Glow in the Dark Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum)

GFP is the short for green fluorescent protein which means it glows in the dark! As legend has it, the axolotl is the Aztec god of fire and lightning, Xolotl, which disguised himself as a salamander to avoid being sacrificed. They are neotenic, meaning that the adults retain traits seen only in...

www.predatoryfins.com

 

[Seisage]

Agree with Colin. They aren't pets that can be handled and their care is much more similar to fish than it is to other amphibians.

40gal is the absolute minimum tank size, and it's likely that they will outgrow that tank too. I think a lot of people keep them in 55s or 125s. They have a high bioload, similar to turtles, so they need very robust biological and mechanical filtration.

The GFP is isolated from jellies (jellyfish), and the genes that code the making of that protein can be incorporated into other animals' genetics. I do believe that's the same technology used for glofish. It's definitely not natural, but also not harmful.

 

[Magnum Man]

"a sucker born every second"... the 2nd listing I posted above is listed as "wild GFP" ... so maybe something different than Glofish, ( and glofish don't actually biolume, that I know of... yet ), so either those are wild type, that were treated with something, or they are that way in the wild??? maybe the power plant isn't so far from the truth???

 

[Seisage]

"a sucker born every second"... the 2nd listing I posted above is listed as "wild GFP" ... so maybe something different than Glofish, ( and glofish don't actually biolume, that I know of... yet ), so either those are wild type, that were treated with something, or they are that way in the wild??? maybe the power plant isn't so far from the truth???

The axolotl is an endangered species in the wild, on the brink of extinction. No capture of wild axolotl is permitted and they are heavily protected by the Mexican government. The "wild" notation on that listing is misleading, but it simply means that aside from the GFP alteration, the axolotl's pattern and coloration is a default "wild type" coloration.
Fluorescing is definitely not naturally occurring in axolotls. It's the same technology as glofish. Both they and this axolotl fluoresce under black light, neither of them bioluminesce.

 

[Magnum Man]

funny they haven't done the same to Glofish yet...

 

[Seisage]

funny they haven't done the same to Glofish yet...

By "the same", do you mean the glowing genetic alteration, or being pushed to extinction?
The genetic alteration technology is the exact same for the glofish and the axolotl. "Glowing" isn't really the right term. The green fluorescent protein does what it says on the bottle—it fluoresces, under UV light. Animals that can make GFP cannot glow on their own, they must be under UV light in order for the fluorescence to show.

As for the extinction... glofish are not their own species. They're just a trademark by a company that genetically alters fish that have been in the hobby for a long time already. Danios and various tetras, generally.

 

[Magnum Man]

I'm familiar with the glofish, & I know they use common fish... I thought the GFP Axolotl, was self luminating, similar to a Firefly...

 

[sharkweek178]

been off & on thinking about these, for a while now... but I have never had one before... are they a pet you can handle, or because of their external gills, should they be treated more like a fish???
I've seen some varieties that glow in the dark... assuming that is a natural thing, not pets caught in the output cooling water at the nuclear power plant
sounds like they can often ingest substrate, so gravel should be avoided... wondering if they use some sort of mat that sits on the bottom of the tanks... some of the pictures I've seen didn't look like they were on a plain glass bottom???
If you have one, what size tank??? I was thinking maybe a 20 gallon long would be good... are you fine, with an open top, on a half or 3/4 full tank, or would a screen top, like used for reptiles be better

Their skin is too sensitive to be handled.

 

[Colin_T]

I'm familiar with the glofish, & I know they use common fish... I thought the GFP Axolotl, was self luminating, similar to a Firefly...

Nope. They are man made, genetically modified organisms with jellyfish genes, as mentioned by Seisage.