The Axolotl: How a Near-Extinct Animal Became an Internet Star

In the summer of 2021, a small, pink creature with feathery gills and a permanent smile appeared in one of the most-played video games on earth — and swam straight into the hearts of an entire generation. The axolotl is the youngest trend in our series. It is still alive, still fresh — and its story is the strangest of all: that of an animal that became world-famous online while almost disappearing in the wild.

When it started: 8 June 2021

On that day the game developer Mojang released the big Caves & Cliffs update (version 1.17) for Minecraft. For the first time, a new animal swam through its underwater caves: the axolotl, in five colour variants — the blue one, at a probability of just around 0.083 %, the rarest. Minecraft counted over 140 million active players a month at the time. Within weeks, a word almost nobody could pronounce became a search term millions of children were typing into Google.

Where it came from: a real animal with an ancient history

Unlike the unicorn or the sloth hype, the axolotl has a real, fascinating model. The Mexican axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) is a salamander that lives only in the canals and lake remnants of Xochimilco on the southern edge of Mexico City. Its name comes from Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, and is linked to the god Xolotl. The peculiarity: the axolotl never truly grows up in the classic sense — it keeps its larval stage, including the famous external gills. It is exactly this "eternal baby face" that makes it so irresistibly cuddly.

Why it caught all of us

The axolotl arrived at the right time. After the first pandemic years, many longed for something small, harmless and comforting — and little fits that better than a permanently smiling mini-dragon. On top of that comes an almost unbelievable biological superpower: axolotls can fully regrow lost limbs, parts of the heart, lungs, eyes and even brain tissue. Researchers at EPFL and TU Dresden decoded a central mechanism behind this in 2023 (published in Nature Communications); a team at Stanford described a molecular "on-off switch" that controls regeneration the same year. That makes the axolotl not just cute, but one of the most important model animals in regenerative medicine — a detail that makes the trend all the more fascinating for many.

The bitter irony: famous and nearly extinct

While millions of virtual axolotls were bred and plush toys sold, the real animal stands at the edge. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the axolotl as critically endangered since 2006. Surveys in Xochimilco document a dramatic collapse: from around 6,000 individuals per square kilometre in 1998 to about 100 in 2008 and only 36 in 2014 — a decline of roughly 99 % in a decade and a half, driven above all by water pollution and the growth of the megacity.

But there is hope. The university UNAM launched the AdoptAxolotl campaign, which lets you symbolically "adopt" an animal and thereby fund protected refuges in the chinampas (floating gardens). And a study published in the journal PLOS ONE in April 2025 brought good news: of 18 captive-bred axolotls released into the wild, all survived the 40-day monitoring period — and the recaptured animals had even gained weight. A first real sign that reintroduction can work.

How the industry reacted

As soon as a trend gains speed, the big brands jump on board. Build-A-Bear launched several axolotl variants, the plush brand Squishmallows its "Archie the Axolotl", joined by Mary Meyer, a Sanrio crossover and shelves full of axolotl items at Target, Walmart and Hot Topic. In the German-speaking world, Migros and Manor stocked plush and school supplies from 2022. The axolotl had firmly arrived in the mainstream.

How it reached us

Our warehouse mirrors the wave too: the axolotl is one of our liveliest ranges. Unlike the dead trends later in this series, there is no "Last Chance" box here — but a selection that is doing rather well right now.

What is alive at ours

• Axolotl Stress Ball — the evergreen for squeezing and breathing out.
• Axolotl Light-Up Popper — fidget fun with light.
• Axolotl Grow Egg — let it grow and watch.
• Axolotl Keychain — articulated, 3D-printed, always with you.
• Axel Axolotl Clay Kit — a creative craft set for little fans.

How the trend lives today

The axolotl is the opposite of a warehouse relic: a young trend, carried by an entire generation of gamers, backed by real science and a story that moves people. At some point this wave too will tip over — but today the little Mexican is firmly in the mainstream. And perhaps the most beautiful thing about its hype is that it draws attention to an animal that urgently needs it.

Sources

• Minecraft Wiki — Caves & Cliffs update: minecraft.wiki
• IUCN status & population decline, Xochimilco: Earth.org, Wikipedia
• Reintroduction study (PLOS ONE, April 2025): journals.plos.org
• UNAM AdoptAxolotl campaign: NPR
• Regeneration research (EPFL/TU Dresden, Stanford 2023): Stanford Medicine

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