Do axolotls sleep?

As far as I know they DO sleep, but it would be difficult to know when, as they don't have any eyelids!
 
Hi Pinkangel,

Yes they do 'sleep'/rest. When you see your axie retreating into its favourite hiding place, remaining still, its most likely having a snooze. They normally also slow down their gill flicking frequency and because of the inactivity, may also appear paler. As they don't have eyelids, their eyes remain open during rest.

On a seperate note, when im really really tired, i become zombified and go into microsleeps with my eyes open too.. (thats a different matter althogether though).

Cheers.
 
Darkmaverick said:
Hi Pinkangel,

Yes they do 'sleep'/rest. When you see your axie retreating into its favourite hiding place, remaining still, its most likely having a snooze. They normally also slow down their gill flicking frequency and because of the inactivity, may also appear paler. As they don't have eyelids, their eyes remain open during rest.

On a seperate note, when im really really tired, i become zombified and go into microsleeps with my eyes open too.. (thats a different matter althogether though).

Cheers.
Click to expand...


i wondered this also, but then confused myself when i realised they, as mentioned, dont have eyelids..

ray,i suffer from a similar condition, but its totally self inflicted
 
It is easy to tell when an axolotl is sleeping - just look for the little zzzZZZzzzZZZs over its head! :p

-Eva
 
i thought they must do, as it seems when i turn my lights of in the evening, pebbles goes into her litttle cocounut shell and doesn't come until until i surface in the morning! Although today she is obviously having a lie in...
 
:ufo:Aww how cute, coconut shell. I want one too! How i wish i could kiss my baby axolotls goodnight. (ok now i think im scaring you guys)..
 
Hi pinkangel729,

Axolotls are crepuscular - most active at sunrise and sunset. Little Mexicans that they are, they tend to take siesta during the day. Should you ever sneak up on them in th middle of the night, you might be surprised how active they are!

-Eva
 
Eva's comments got me thinking.

In captive bred axolotls, where the temperature and lighting are controlled, i wonder how does the axolotl acquire the circadian/diurnal rhythmn to distinguish day, night and anything in between.

In most mammals, the rhythmn is partly determined by the pineal gland in response to photoperiod or length of light as well as changes in temperature. For example, nocturnal animals can sense the decreasing amount of light and falling temperatures as twilight sets in. This is easily accomplished in wild animals.

I set my axolotls tank chiller to a permanent 17 degree celsius 365 days a year, automated 6 hours light between the hours of 10am-2pm and keep the area dim otherwise. Some people keep their axies in basements etc that could be dark 365 days of the year too. So for axies kept in the same water temperature and same amount of light (or no light at all) daily for years, how do they actually acquire the rhythmn??

I wonder if they do lose the rhythmn and become random in activity level.
 
Ray, I've wondered this too.

An anecdotal story about circadian/seasonal rhythms: I have a ball python. Every year, without fail, she stops eating in October, and doesn't eat again until March. I know this is her 'winter mode', but her light and temperature never change. One year, I even kept her in a windowless room with NO access to outside light. Yet she still refused her rats come the beginning of October. And I did offer food 3 or 4 times throughout the winter. Yet come March, she got the normal offering of pre-heated rat, and she struck right away.

I've always found those in-born rhythms very interesting.
 
Has anyone here been to Iceland or other extreme latitude, where they have months of continuous sunlight or darkness? It is really weird for a newcomer - particularly "eternal light" - but eventually, the body's natural rhythm kicks back in. I believe it would take more than a single lifetime or even a handful of generations to change the results of millenia of evolution.

-Eva
 
I guess it really varies species to species. In production animals in particular, lets say laying hens, the amount of photoperiod they recieve is controlled such as to maximise their output. They do respond and hence alter their 'natural' rhythmns with human intervention.

Assuming i visited kaysie in the states or she came with her python to sydney to visit me, i wonder whether the inverse seasons will have any bearing on the snake's bio rhythm. Maybe im just thinking way too deeply..
 
haha Ok if you out a blanket over a birdcage, the bird thinks it is night and goes to sleep. Good point. I was also thinking about plants - that it is possible to affect their reproductive cycles with red and blue lights to emulate different seasons. I have also read here in the forum about people with caudates that are tricky to breed, requiring cooler temps, different light durations, etc.

Jet lag is also a good example. If I fly from here to USA, I arrive on the same date but late at night; if I fly back, I arrive on the morning of the next day. The flight time is almost the same but I find it easier to adjust if I don't lose a day.

However, even affecting the plant or animal's specific behavior does not change its overall tendency. The stipulation of a maximum output would indicate that there is nevertheless a limit to the potential; i.e., a range that can be influenced but not fundamentally altered.

But maybe I am not thinking deeply enough. :p

-Eva
 
Haha Eva, i can see where you are coming from.

I guess our definition of 'alteration in biorhythmns' differ. I intepret any behavioural and physiological changes (within the range) as a direct relation or response to an external variable such as light and temperature as change in biorhythmn. I am not referring to a complete overhaul of innate instinctive response.

If light and temperature were not capable or are not variables of inducing signifcant changes in biorhythmns, it would make efforts like inducing breeding behaviour by external manipulation invalid. Furthermore, biorhythmn changes doesn't just mean behavioural traits that we can observe but also unobservable physiological changes like hormonal levels, fat storage capacity etc.

I think that possibly the biorhythmns of caudates do get affected to a certain degree but as with all biological processes, equillibrate and 'normalises' out over a period of time. Just throwing out my hypothesis.

Cheers
 
hehhe Ray I gotta tweak your nose here (most affectionately, you understand):

Darkmaverick said:
...I intepret any behavioural and physiological changes ... as a direct relation or response to an external variable such as light and temperature as change in biorhythmn.
Click to expand...

So... this includes a suntan? :p

Honestly, though, I really have no idea what "biorhythm" means. Isn't that the thing that women measure when they take their temperature every morning when hoping to make a baby?

.... but as with all biological processes, equillibrate and 'normalises' out over a period of time.
Click to expand...

That was what I meant. Like jet lag, any major change in ambiance will eventually be assimilated. The creature adapts. That is what sets us currently living creatures apart from the dinosaurs - the ability to adapt. Well, except maybe the panda.

-Eva
 
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