How can you tell the sex of your axolotl?

I think it is safe to say that axolotls have stormed the pet trade since their appearance in children's video games such as #minecraft. Whether this is good or bad exposure for the animal, is a matter of opinion and a very divided one of that.

One of the things we get contacted about almost daily, is eggs. Axolotls can lay upto 1000 eggs in a single clutch, so the panic is very real when owners wake up to see those slimy little balls of pure terror, make an appearance in their tanks.

So how can you ensure you do not pick 2 axolotls of the same sex when adopting or purchasing?

Well if you have your heart set on a baby, the simple and only answer is, your not! so you need to prepare for the possibility that you could choose two axolotls of different sexes that will need separating into different tanks from, potentially, 6 months onwards.

The same can also be said for females under 18 months old. Axolotls reach full sexual maturity at around 18 months old, so if you purchase a one year old female there is still the possibility of them showing as male within the next 8 months. Males can be easier to tell as they can show their sex from 9-18 months of age, with some showing sooner. This is how their anatomy works so if you visit an establishment and they sell you a baby as a specified sex, its not, there is no way to determine their sex until they reach sexual maturity or show as male. You will hear that males are thinner than females which is certainly a true statement however you can not rely on this when sexing the animal. Some females can stay slim util sexual maturity and some males can really enjoy their food!

So What should you be looking out for ?

Take One of our rescues here, in this image she is over 6 years old so a perfect example as to what to look for in a confirmed female.

So despite her chunkiness, if you take a look at the area circled, there are no big bulges around the cloaca. Some females may have a small bulge when they need the toilet but this is much smaller than that of a male.

Where as if you look at Rory here on the right, you can see a very clear large bulge around the cloaca this confirms that he is male

It is incredibly important to separate your axolotls immediately if you find that you have two opposite sexes in the same tank. Firstly the pure number of eggs that a female can lay in one clutch causes her alot of stress and discomfort. If she is not separated from the male he will continue to breed her to death, and that is the reality of the importance of learning how to tell the sex of your animals.

We hope you find this helpful and our next blog post will give you information on what to do if you are suprised one day by eggs in your tank.