Expo Somos Axolotl focuses on the challenges faced by this endemic amphibian

To make visible the ecological and survival problems of the axolotl, the Somos Axolotl collective held the exhibition Expo We Are Axolotl in the Roma Verde orchard, in the Roma neighborhood. The exhibition is made up of 16 sculptures that seek to represent the symbolism and living conditions of this amphibian endemic to Mexico. It will be open to the public until February 8.

The artist and co-founder of the Somos Axolotl collective, Giovanna González, spoke about the importance of taking up ecological issues for childhood and rethinking the way in which we coexist in this metropolis, considered one of the largest in the world.

“We are about 20 organizations that seek to protect the lake system of Xochimilco. Our intention is to promote public awareness so that they reflect on our lifestyle; that is, not to be sustainable, but regenerative with the ecosystems that are part of this metropolis,” he assured.

Inaugurated yesterday, the exhibition also included the presence of young students from the Carol Baur School, who performed the traditional Huapango Huastec. The children also contributed with paintings that were auctioned in order to raise resources for environmental organizations dedicated to the protection of the axolotl.

Dr. Alejandro Alva Martínez, expert in aquatic biology from the Metropolitan Autonomous University, gave a conference on the importance of the recovery of the water basin of the Valley of Mexico:

“Axolotls need high-quality water and organisms on which they feed. The chains to have an adult axolotl take a long time and we are losing them at a very accelerated rate, because the large lake in which they naturally lived is no longer there. We have dried it up, contaminated it and it is losing more and more land, and an important way to protect it is with wetlands.

“Xochimilco requires that there be more of these natural spaces that are refuges to save the aquatic plants and fauna that live there. An example is the Apantle channel, one of the smallest, it is almost not navigable, but it is an important point for the axolotls, because their food lives there, such as water fleas.

“I think it would be very positive to reproduce the chinampas system in other parts of the capital,” commented Alva Martínez.

The sample Expo We Are Axolotl It will be open until Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., in the Roma Verde garden (Xalapa 234, Roma Sur neighborhood). Free entry.