To get two Axolotls to breed, you need to get them near each other and feed each of them a Bucket of Tropical Fish to get them to enter “Love Mode.” At this point, they will breed with one another, producing a baby Axolotl. This is the same process by which you can breed many other animals, such as foxes.
Baby Axolotls will follow their parents until fully grown, which happens 20 minutes after birth. You can speed up the journey to adulthood by feeding the baby more Buckets of Tropical Fish.
You can also lead an Axolotl in a direction by approaching it and holding a Bucket of Tropical Fish in your hand, much like how a Pig will follow a carrot on a stick. This will help you get both Axolotls in the same place, ready for breeding.
Note: Tropical Fish on its own does not do anything. You need to use a Bucket of Tropical Fish to affect nearby Axolotls.
Breeding Axolotls: How to Get a Blue Axolotl
As of Minecraft version 1.17.1, the only way you can get a Blue Axolotl without using commands is by breeding one.
Axolotl has five different colors: pink, brown, gold, cyan, and blue. The baby Axolotl will usually take after one of its parents in color, but there is a 1 in 1,200 (0.083%) chance that it will become a rare Blue Axolotl instead.
The color does not affect the creature itself. All Axolotl are functionally and behaviorally identical; even the ultra-rare blue variant has nothing which sets it apart from the other types besides its hue.
Of course, there are probably already dozens of texture packs that will change Axolotl colors to whatever the author likes.
How to Spawn a Blue Axolotl Using Commands
To spawn a Blue Axolotl using commands in Java Edition, type the following into the console:
/summon axolotl ~ ~ ~ {Variant:4}
To spawn a Blue Axolotl using commands in Bedrock Edition, here’s what you need to type into the console:
/summon axolotl ~ ~ ~ Minecraft:entity_born
Both of these will specifically spawn a Blue Axolotl rather than any of the other colors. So if you’re happy to use cheats to get your hands on the rarest Axolotl type, these commands are all you need.
Axolotl Behavior Explained
Axolotls are innately friendly toward players, but they are hostile toward all other aquatic monsters, except dolphins and turtles. If an Axolotl is hurt, there is a good chance it will fake its death, so you shouldn’t count on it for assistance in the fight against the Wither boss or the Slimes. It will also restore any hit points lost during this time and be immune to attacks from other monsters.
Axolotls can have leads attached to them, or they can be picked up in a bucket of water. Either way, they can be handled. Because an Axolotl that has been picked up in this manner and then released later will not de-spawn, this is an excellent strategy for populating a moat that surrounds your castle or towers in the game.
Where do Axolotls Spawn?
Axolotls spawn primarily in underwater caves in any biome, so they’re not so rare that you’ll need to hunt for a specific Minecraft seed to see one. The exact rules for their spawning are as follows:
- They must spawn in a water block below Y-level 63;
- There must be a solid block of some sort above where it generates;
- They can only develop in pitch darkness (Light Level 0);
- They can only spawn within 5 blocks of a stone-type block (Stone, Deepslate, Granite, Diorite, Andesite, or Tuff).
This may seem like a few criteria, but Axolotls aren’t an uncommon sight in Minecraft 1.17, particularly if you’re in a very coastal location. Of course, if you want to see one, you can always spawn one in Creative Mode using an Axolotl Egg. Just don’t expect to find any blue Axolotls utilizing this method because, as I mentioned above, blue variants are only spawned through breeding since the 1.17.1 update.
How to Tame an Axolotl in Minecraft
Axolotls can’t technically be tamed, but they’re not hostile towards players and can quickly be scooped up into a bucket. You can then carry them with you or re-home them in a pond or lake nearer to your base.
You can also attach a lead to an axolotl if you don’t have a bucket handy, but it will die if it’s out of water for over five minutes, not if it’s raining or a thunderstorm.
Minecraft Axolotl colors: How to get the rare blue baby Axolotl
Minecraft axolotls come in the following colors:
- Lucy (pink)
- Wild (brown)
- Gold
- Cyan
- Blue
The blue Axolotl is the rarest color and has a 0.083% chance of spawning naturally or breeding adults with other colors. So, if you’ve got your heart set on a blue axolotl, you’ll need a lot of patience and more than a bit of luck.
What do Axolotls Eat?
Axolotls eat tropical fish, which are generally found in ocean biomes. If you want to feed an axolotl, you’ll need to use a bucket of tropical fish rather than single ones you’ve previously caught.
As tropical fish tend to scare easily, they can be pretty tricky to capture in a bucket, so patience is vital. Otherwise, it’s worth checking to see if the Wandering Trader has a bucket of tropical fish for sale.
Do Axolotls Attack Other Mobs?
While these adorable creatures aren’t hostile to players, they won’t hesitate to attack seaborne threats. While they leave dolphins and turtles alone, everything else is fair game—they’ll even take on a Drowned.
They also have a neat defense mechanism: If an axolotl takes damage underwater, it will play dead and gain Regeneration. The Regeneration status effect can be transferred to a player temporarily when killing a mob the Axolotl was fighting.
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