Axolotls have some very specific temperature requirements. In fact, not only do they just prefer cool water temperatures, but living in water that is over around 70*F for an extended period of time can be detrimental to their health! If you’re researching axolotls as pets, you’ve probably seen information about their temperature requirements coming up over and over again. It’s on the rarer side for exotic pets to actually require cool temperatures. Typically keeping animals like reptiles and amphibians as pets will mean keeping them at room temperature, or in a heated enclosure. But this isn’t the case when it comes to axolotls.
Axolotls Like It cold!
Axolotls are thought to be nearly extinct in the wild. They are native to a very small area – cool waterways around Mexico City. Axolotls are, basically, a species of neotenic salamander. This means that, until most other species of salamanders, axolotls do not normally metamorphose into land dwelling critters. They retain their baby like features such as their long, frilly external gills and tails designed for swimming. Except for in very rare cases, most axolotls spend their entire lives living underwater.
Amphibians, Thus Axolotls, Are Cold Blooded
Like other species of amphibians, animals such as frogs and salamanders, axolotls are cold blooded.
Ectothermic is another term for cold-blooded animals. Ecto meaning “outer” and therm meaning “heat”. Ectothermic animals rely on heat outside their body to stay warm. However, as we already discussed above, that doesn’t mean all amphibians like warm environments. Just that, unlike you and I, amphibians like axolotls don’t generate their own body heat. They rely on the temperature of their environment.
Reptiles are cold-blooded as well. It’s why you might see an iguana, or other lizard, laying out on a warm rock on a sunny day. Cold-blooded animals need to use their environment, like the sun or sun warmed rocks, to help them generate heat. Maintaining an ideal body temperature, whatever that ideal happens to be, is important for general health, as well as bodily functions such as digestion.
Cold-Blooded Animals Don’t Actually Have Cold Blood!
Or at least, not always. The term cold-blooded can be a bit confusing. To go back to reptiles, for example, if you were able to measure the blood temperature of a basking iguana, their blood would likely be pretty warm!
Cold-blooded verses warm-blooded is more about how an animal maintains it’s temperature. The bodies of warm-blooded species are able to generate their own heat. So, baring extremes, their internal core temperature is maintained no matter what type of environment they are in. When you go out in the cold, you may feel colder, but your body works hard to keep all your vital organs at the correct temperature so they can continue to function properly even when the temperature in your environment isn’t 100% ideal. Our bodies have ways of heating or cooling themselves, such as shivering when we get cold or sweating when we get hot.
Cold-blooded animals, on the other hand, must change their environment to change their body temperature. A reptile who is too cold will seek out a warm spot in the sun. A salamander or frog who is too hot on a warm summer day will seek out a cooler location, such as burrowing underground or finding a cool, shady spot to relax.
But In The Case Of Axolotls, They Want Cold Blood!
The ideal temperature for a pet axolotl is around 64*F. They can deal with temperatures that are cooler, and a bit warmer, but spending too much time in temperatures around 70*F – 75*F for an extended amount of time can be detrimental to their health. Axolotls evolved in the depths of cool waters, so their bodies evolved to function best in these conditions. So, not only are axolotls cold-blooded, or ectotherms, but they actually prefer for their blood, and the rest of their bodies, to be on the cool side! They may be derpy, and not the smartest critters in the animal kingdom, but I don’t think anyone can say that axolotls are not interesting!
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