Hi Mitchell,
While the axolotl is at the larvae stage the lungs will develop at the same time as the rear legs. When the axolotl reaches the Juvenile to Adult stage the lungs are already well established.
Poor water quality is the usual suspect in causing the gill feathers to erode and shrivel.
Could you advise on your water parameters for Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate and Water temperature?
What sort of substrate are you using?
Axolotls are very messy little grots, are you being dilligent and thorough enough in cleaning up their wastes and removing left over food? This has to be done each day.
How often are you doing water changes and how much water are you replacing each time?
The gill feathers did not really shrivel or erode, they just shrunk until there was nearly nothing there.
I do not have those testing kits because my parents haven't bought them for me yet.
I should be get them this week.
I use bare bottom tank because it is so much easier to clean.
I clean everyday using a vacuuming siphon, this gets most of the gunk out from the bottom but there is still a lot in the floating in the water that the siphon won't get.
I am getting a turkey baster tomorrow i think.
I change the water once or twice a week, replacing 1/3 to a half.
The tank is too small for 3 axolotls which creates more mess.
My parents won't get me a new tank yet because they say we don't have any room
which we do.
They said if i keep my axies alive til Winter they may get me a new tank.
Is there anyway that it may be caused by too much aeration because a website
said that they breath through the gills and their skin but when the tank is aerated too well
they don't need the feathers so they loose them.
I have the fan on some nights which sits right next to the tank and i have a long aerating stone if too much aeration is the problem.
I have some pictures if they help.
This is the axolotl with the worst case of feather loss.