You might have a favourite spot to sit, but a small cave-dwelling amphibian from Europe takes this to the next level. Scientists found out that most olms will spend years in the same ten-metre area. One particularly comfortable individual was found in the exact same place seven years after it was first spotted.
Olms, which are a type of salamander, have some more unusual features, too. They are the largest animals to spend their entire lives in caves. They also never leave the water, unlike most amphibians, and still have gills as adults.
Because they never leave the caves, they’re completely blind, although their senses of smell and hearing are excellent. Most colonies have pale, colourless skin, which is why they’re sometimes called ‘human fish’.
People used to only see olms when their caves flooded and washed them out into the open, which led to the idea that they were baby dragons. Now, however, we know exactly where to find them.
Lachlan Writes Science 