Amphibians

Axolotl

Ambystoma mexicanum

Glass Frog

By th1098 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0,

• The name axolotl is a Nahua word

• They live in Lake Xochimilco and were once eaten by Aztecs

• They do not undergo metamorphosis like other amphibians and retain external gills for breathing into adulthood

• They can regenerate limbs

• Metamophosis can be induced with injections of iodine

Giant Salamander

Andrias japonicus

By Geoff Gallice from Gainesville, FL, USA (Glass frog) [CC BY 2.0

• Translucent belly skin allows observation of internal organs on living organisms

• PBS Glass Frog episode

By RedGazelle15 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0

• Asian giant salamanders can be over 5' long.& live for over 50 years

• They've been hunted to near extinction in China and Japan

• Hellbenders, the American variety, can be up to 2.5' long

PBS Giant Salamander episode

Giant Salamander Song, by Michael Hearst

At War With the Newts: science fiction novel by Karel Capek (1936) about giant salamanders