The Axolotl, a aquatic salamander and close relative to the tiger salamander, is native to Mexico and features on the Country’s 50 peso bill.
Its name derives from the Nahuatl language and means “water monster” or “land lizard”, the axolotl is a symbol of resistance as it continues to fight extinction.
In 1998 there were 6,000 axolotls per square kilometer in its natural habitat, by 2014 this had dropped to 36.
Now a new survey is underway to find the remaining population in its natural habitat using traditional fishing techniques as well as innovative DNA analysis.
The main threats to the axolotl population in Mexico are the introduction of carp and tilapia as well as pollution.
The axolotl has the greatest known regenerative capacity and this has made it a model for scientific research into regeneration, ageing and the regulation of the genome.
