Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
olm
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images
Olm (Proteus anguinus), darkened by exposure to light.
Quizzes
Sea otter (Enhydra lutris), also called great sea otter, rare, completely marine otter of the northern Pacific, usually found in kelp beds. Floats on back. Looks like sea otter laughing. saltwater otters
Animal Group Names
Lion (panthera leo)
Deadliest Animals Quiz
Young chimpanzee dressed in a shirt and sweater vest, scratching his head thinking. (primates)
Wild Words from the Animal Kingdom Vocabulary Quiz
Mute swan with cygnet. (birds)
Match the Baby Animal to Its Mama Quiz
Black eyed tree frog (Agalychnis moreletii)
All About Amphibians
Related Questions
Read Next
animal. Amphibian. Frog. Anura. Ranidae. Frog in grass.
Abundant Animals: The Most Numerous Organisms in the World
Spider monkey swinging in a tree. (primate, jungle animal)
Why Do Animals Have Tails?
Japanese spider crab
10 Animals With Evolutionary Traits Plucked Straight Out of a Nightmare
Malayan Leaf Frog - Megophrys nasuta
9 Animals That Look Like Leaves
The polka-dot treefrog (Hypsiboas punctatus).
Freaky Fluorescent Frog Found
Discover
Diverse elementary school children wearing school uniforms running outside of school. Boys girls
Pro and Con: School Uniforms
Thanksgiving Turkey with all the sides
Why Do We Eat Turkey on Thanksgiving?
An ancient egyptian hieroglyphic painted carving showing the falcon headed god Horus seated on a throne and holding a golden fly whisk. Before him are the Pharoah Seti and the goddess Isis. Interior wall of the temple to Osiris at Abydos, Egypt.
11 Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
Thanksgiving Celebration Traditional Dinner Setting Food Concept
Why Is Thanksgiving in the U.S. Celebrated on a Thursday?
Title: Senate Square, St. Petersburg, December 14, 1825: repression of the troop mutiny - watercolor by Carl Ivanovitch Kollman, 1825 depicts Decembrist uprising clashing with cavalry, with spectators watching. (new style December 26, 1825) Europe. Saint
8 of the Largest Empires in History
A human Inuit skull in a stone chambered cairn in Ilulissat in Greenland. These ancient graves are pre christian and are at least 2000
14 Tough Questions Answered
Baseball laying in the grass. Homepage blog 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society, sports and games athletics
10 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time
Olm (Proteus anguinus), darkened by exposure to light.
Olm (Proteus anguinus), darkened by exposure to light.

olm

salamander
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/animal/olm
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Also known as: Proteus anguinus
Written by
George R. Zug
Curator Emeritus, Division of Amphibians and Reptiles, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
George R. Zug
Fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated: • Article History
Related Topics:
Proteus
See all related content

olm, (Proteus anguinus), blind salamander belonging to the family Proteidae (order Caudata). It lives in the subterranean streams in karst areas of the Adriatic coast from northeastern Italy southward into Montenegro. As an aquatic cave dweller, the olm has lost its skin pigmentation, and its vestigial but light-sensitive eyes are covered with skin. It retains numerous larval traits, such as well-developed gills, a lateral line system, and tiny limbs. The olm grows to about 30 cm (12 inches) long and has a normally white (unpigmented) body, red gill plumes, a narrow head, and a blunt snout.

Olms reproduce by either laying eggs or giving birth to live young. Temperature appears to be the factor that determines which reproductive strategy is used, with colder water triggering the bearing of live young. Adults commonly produce two live larvae using the live-bearing strategy, whereas they may produce up to 70 eggs using the egg-laying strategy.

George R. Zug