Save the axolotl: Urgent “Adoptaxolotl” campaign begins in Mexico

They’re calling it Adoptaxolotl. It’s the latest relaunch of a fundraising campaign by ecologists at Mexico’s National Autonomous University to save the endangered (and adorable) type of underwater salamander known as the axolotl. The amphibian critters have become popular household pets in the U.S., but as reported by the Guardian Thursday, almost all 18 species of axolotl remain critically endangered as their main habitat is threatened by increasing water pollution and invasive species. With Mexico’s environmental department facing an 11% funding cut, scientists are turning to the public for help. 

“What I know is that we have to work urgently,” ecologist Alejandro Calzada told the Guardian. “We lack big monitoring of all the streams in Mexico City … For this large area it is not enough.” 

That monitoring is the first spending priority for ecologists, who hope to begin gathering an updated headcount on the animals in March. It would be the first since 2014, though a recent international study found less than 1,000 Mexican axolotls left in the wild, whereas Mexican scientists could once find an average of 6,000 per square kilometer in the country. Last year, the scientists managed to raise more than $26,300 for an experimental captive-breeding program. This year, you can virtually “adopt” an axolotl for $35, and you’ll be sent live updates about your axolotl’s health along with an adoption certificate. Those on a budget who still want to help can also buy an axolotl a virtual dinner or help one fix up its little house — a donation rewarded by a personalized letter of axolotl gratitude.