What Do Axolotls Eat?

Axolotl salamanders’ smiling faces and feathery gills make them beautiful aquatic pets. Where wild axolotls are dark-colored and blend into their natural habitat, pet axolotls come in more than a dozen color variations—called morphs. 

Although deciding which axolotl morph to bring home may be difficult, axolotl feeding is much easier. So what do axolotls eat?

Axolotl Diet

Axolotls are carnivores and need a protein-heavy diet with enough variety to supply the nutrients they need.

What Do Axolotls Eat in the Wild?

In the wild, axolotls scavenge for anything they can fit down their throat. Their small teeth are not designed for tearing or chewing, so axolotls must swallow their food whole.

To feed, axolotls quickly open their mouths, sucking their food in—vacuum-style. Along with food, axolotls inhale water, algae, and sometimes small pebbles.

Wild axolotls aren’t picky eaters. Their diets include accidental algae (because suction-feeding isn’t always precise) and a variety of small prey, including:

• Insects and insect larvae 

• Worms

• Slugs and snails

• Small crustaceans

• Small fish

• Other salamanders

• Tadpoles

What Do Axolotls Eat as Pets?

Axolotl pet parents should provide a healthy balance of foods in their axolotl’s diet. A properly formulated axolotl diet can prevent some illnesses and help them handle stress and minor injuries. Remember: Good health starts in the gut.

Fortunately, feeding your pet a diet similar to what an axolotl may find in the wild is easy. A healthy diet for an axolotl includes various insect larvae, worms, and crustaceans.

Most axolotl foods are readily available and affordable. Pet parents who want a constant food supply for their axolotl can even culture or grow their own brine shrimp, earthworms, and water fleas (daphnia).

Pet axolotls, like their wild cousins, are happy to eat just about anything. You can purchase appropriate axolotl food at local aquarium suppliers, but some listed below may also be available online:

• Daphnia 

• White worms

• Grindal worms

• Bloodworms

• Fresh or freeze-dried brine shrimp (freeze-dried should ideally be rehydrated first)

• Blackworms

• Earthworms

What Do Baby Axolotls Eat?

Young axolotls are especially fond of live food, and it may be the only thing that triggers a feeding response.

Daphnia, a small crustacean, is one of the best foods for a growing axolotl. However, pet parents can also cut earthworms into bite-sized chunks and offer brine shrimp hatchlings. 

Can Axolotls Eat Gravel?

Whether or not pet parents include small gravel or fine sand in an axolotl habitat is somewhat controversial. Small pebbles or gravel sand can cause impactions in their digestive tract. Any substrate that an axolotl can eat should be avoided to prevent any medical conditions. 

However, there’s at least some anecdotal evidence that these aquatic salamanders eat sand and gravel on purpose. Captive axolotls have been seen actively seeking out and eating small pebbles and sand—but nobody knows why.

Some theorize that the stones and sand help axolotls control their buoyancy. They say that because axolotls don’t have swim bladders or any other natural way to control their buoyancy, they use sand and gravel to keep themselves stable in the water.

Most agree that fine sand and small smooth pebbles are relatively safe for adult axolotls. However, rocks and pebbles should be two times larger than their head to prevent ingestion. Juvenile axolotls under about 3–4 inches long are probably safer without substrate.

How To Feed an Axolotl

Although an axolotl can come out of the water for short periods, they do not live or eat on land. They live in the water throughout their lives and all feeding is done underwater. 

Although axolotl feeding times vary, the salamanders tend to be more active after sunset and before sunrise—making dinner time for you and your axolotl about the same. 

Feeding an adult axolotl is as easy as dropping food into their aquarium. Adults are usually comfortable taking live or dead food and will eat nearly anything. 

In contrast, younger axolotls use visual cues to feed, so live food is important. If an axolotl’s food isn’t quite wiggly enough, pet parents can use feeding tongs to wiggle it. As long as it’s moving, most young axolotls should eat without any problems. 

Figuring out how much food your axolotl needs will take some experimentation. Each axolotl has different preferences, so pet parents may find it helpful to keep feeding notes. 

Axolotl Feeding at Different Life Stages

Just like humans have different needs as they grow, so do axolotls.

At all ages, pet parents should feed axolotls as much as they can eat in about three to five minutes. Their food must be smaller than the width of their head. Remember that axolotls cannot chew their food.

When they’re finished, use a turkey baster to remove leftovers from your axolotl habitat. This step isn’t required, but it will help keep the water cleaner.

Your axolotl’s size also affects how you feed them:

• Juvenile axolotls up to 3 inches long should be fed daily, up to three times per day. 

• When your axolotl is between 3 and 7 inches long, begin reducing feedings to twice per day, and then to one daily feeding. 

• Once an axolotl is over 7 inches in length, space feedings out further. Adult axolotls over about 7.5 inches only need to eat every two to three days. They have slower metabolisms and need the extra time to digest food in their cool water habitat. 

Gauging How Much Axolotl Food to Offer

If an axolotl doesn’t eat everything or still seems hungry, that’s OK. Adjust the amount so their body condition remains healthy—it’s a matter of learning how much is too much, too little, or just right. 

What is the Best Axolotl Food?

Most of the recent research on axolotls focuses on their impressive regeneration abilities. However, the research on axolotl diets shows that the best axolotl food is low-fat and high in protein. One study showed excellent growth results in juvenile axolotls that were fed soft salmon pellets containing 45% protein. 

Pet parents who want to supplement their axolotl’s diet with a commercial axolotl food pellet should look for soft pellets with at least 40% protein and less than 10% fat. They should not contain artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. 

Although an axolotl may eat soft food pellets, the best axolotl food is a combination of live and frozen/thawed food like brine shrimp, earthworms, and daphnia. They have all the nutrition an axolotl needs.

What Can Axolotls Not Eat?

Even though your axolotl will eat nearly anything, that doesn’t mean they should.

Insects with hard exoskeletons like crickets, waxworms, and hornworms should be avoided. Their digestive system struggles with the hard bits, and it may become difficult for an axolotl to defecate.

Some pet parents offer hornworms with the horns removed, but it may be safer to avoid them altogether.