I recently bought an ornate bichir about and inch and half, its gills are out of its body a little almost like an axolotl is this normal?
Baby ornate Bichir with gills like an axolotl
- Thread starter Bbg81018
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Alright perfect thanks so much so excited to see this little guy grow into a monster
Perfectly normal. Bichirs rely on their lungs for long-term respiration (they will drown without them) so the younger bichirs will use these fluffy gills to extract sufficient oxygen until their lungs develop 
I've read of that happening. From what ive read they arent sure why. Possibilities include no good access to air, extremely poor oxygen content in the water. But again not sure why but most indicate stress of some sort.
Another thing I just thought of they could have been there still from "birth" just not so noticeable but may be "larger" do to inflamation. This could be caused by poor water quality especially from ammonia. Not saying you dont take care of your tank just a thought.