Axolotls in ponds.

[aird3]

I was chatting the other day to a rep in one of the aqauriums where I bought my tank. Of English decent and an older person, he mentioned owning axolotls as a child and how he kept them in ponds. I reacted with the next piece of information that he come out with, and they were stagnant ponds. A thought immediatly crossed my mind. How do axolotls survive in stagnant ponds, wouldn't the bacteria be too high for axolotls to survive. I mean when you think about it, we go to so much trouble to keep the water clean in our tanks, and yet here they can live in stagnant ponds and survive. He also mentioned that if the ponds dry up they turn into land salamanders. Has anyone heard of this before, and can you keep axolotls healthy in a stagnant pond.

 

[Kaysie]

Re: axalotls in ponds.

Just like most pet shops... they're pretty much full of it.

Axolotls can live in healthy ponds. But these ponds usually have plants and a healthy cycle going, and are not 'stagnant'.

And if the pond dries up, the axolotls will probably die, not morph.

 

[infested]

Re: axalotls in ponds.

This guy i met once bred axolotls for a while. He actually raised them in little ponds, which he claimed (rightly) that increased the O2 dissolution in the water, producting quite large adults (one picture he showed me, the axie was something like 30 or 35 cm long!!!) He also suggested that the ponds were stagnant, and that, along with some other really really questionable advice, has resulted in me avoiding him altogether.

Alot of people seem to think that axies metamorphosise on command... I didnt think that that many people knew they were even capable of it; i certainly didnt before i got interested...

 

[Lisa]

I'm sure they can live in a cycled pond just as they live in a cycled tank. Remember although we keep the water "clean", it's far from bacteria-free, as the nitrogen cycle depends on bacteria to work and without it, the water is rapidly toxic. And algae isn't a problem for axies, it's just that most people don't want to look at a lot of it in their tanks. In Australia however, I very much doubt they would survive outdoors through summer, almost everywhere. Tasmania maybe? but they are not legal there anyway. It just gets too hot here; and even in a hole in the ground I think you'd have to intervene a lot to prevent them getting too warm. I'd be interested to know how many people have tried in Australia, and what their experiences have been.

 

[Littlelotl]

They can survive in an out door pond in certain areas like Britain but I wouldn't risk it in australia. They can survive even if the pond freezes over as long as the water is deep enough that it doesn't freeze throughout (though I would put a sheet over the pond or something to prevent this) I am in the middle of setting up a pond as we speak though I already have some residents that have moved in (after 3 weeks!) and am now not sure what to do though the palmate newt and frog as they are cute.

 

[Quetzacoatl]

Look at this http://www.nova.cz/tvarchiv/?238v=47502&238p=LOSKUTAK&238d=28.01.2007&238o=

I know that you will not understand Czech language, but in this TV programme is a man, who has axies in pond and he told that his axies successfully lived and survived in a pond for more then 5 years.

 

[aird3]

Intersting response. I have heard that in Mexico that axolotls can live out of water and walk on land. Anyone else heard this?

 

[Quetzacoatl]

Intersting response. I have heard that in Mexico that axolotls can live out of water and walk on land. Anyone else heard this?

Axolotls can live out of water and walk on land. But I think that only morphed axolotls can do that

 

[Kaysie]

In Mexico, the term 'axolotl' refers to a complex of species, not just A. mexicanum.

 

[madeve]

has anyone noticed how that first leucistic axie has his gills really forward? Doesn't that show stress?

 

[Quetzacoatl]

has anyone noticed how that first leucistic axie has his gills really forward? Doesn't that show stress?

They have gills forward, because they were removed from the pond to the small tank So I think yes - they were stressed during the recording, but they look healthy to me.