Six very rare Mexican amphibians are beginning a new life in a Tenerife rescue facility after being seized in a crackdown on illegally imported species.
The six axolotl salamanders (Ambystoma mexicanum) were removed by the Civil Guard’s Nature Protection Service, known as Seprona, from two properties in Los Realejos and Granadilla after the owners were unable to produce the required paperwork showing their legitimate origins.
They were taken to the Exotic Animal Recovery Centre run by the Neotropico Foundation in Barranco Grande, outside Sanat Cruz, and the seizures could mark a significant step in helping preserve the dwindling species from extinction.
Although common in domestic aquariums. the axolitl is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) as critically endangered in the wild, with a decreasing population of just a few hundred adult individuals. It is listed also under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
The rare amphibians – found almost exclusively in a small number of lakes in Mexico – are of particular interest to researchers also due to their ability to regenerate limbs, gills and parts of their eyes and brains. Their ability to regenerate declines with age but does not disappear, earning the species the nickname Peter Pan, which might account for another major threat to its survival: its use in rituals associated with black magic and santería religions.
The new additions bring the number of animals cared for in the Exotic Animal Recovery Centre, the only one in the Canaries to have Level 3 Biosecurity quarantine certification, to over 2500, of which nearly one thousand arrived last year alone. Seventeen of the animals are classed as potentially dangerous, including tarantulas, scorpions and snakes, and many are the result of the ongoing efforts by Seprona to identify and remove illegally imported animals.
Photo: Fundación Neotrópico
