At a Glance
Taylor’s Salamander has a salty superpower! This salamander only lives in Laguna Alchichica, a crater lake in Puebla, Mexico that is very saline. The lake is so salty that almost no other amphibians would be able to survive in it, but without conservation measures to manage and protect the water levels in the lake, it may become too salty for even Taylor’s Salamanders. Water from Laguna Alchichica is increasingly being diverted, causing the water level to drop and the remaining water to become even saltier.
Taylor’s Salamander is aquatic and spends its entire life in water and never loses the feathered gills that most other salamander species only have as juveniles. Even though Taylor’s Salamanders perpetually look like juveniles as adults, they are actually capable of breeding as tadpoles.
At a glance
Taxa
Amphibians
Geography
Mexico
Status
Critically Endangered
Habitat
Freshwater lake
Estimated Population
Unknown
Threats
Water extraction; increasing salinity; pollution
Potential Recovery Actions
Habitat protection; monitoring; research; conservation breeding
