Lake Titicaca’s best-known wildlife lives nowhere else on Earth: a giant frog that breathes through its skin, a grebe that cannot fly, and more than 20 species of small native fish. Most of it depends on one plant, the totora reed, and much of it is under pressure from introduced fish, fishing nets and pollution.
This guide covers what lives in and around the lake, what is native and what was brought in, and what you can realistically see on a day out from Puno.
Quick facts
| Altitude | 3,812 m above sea level |
| Protection | Titicaca National Reserve in Peru (1978, 36,180 ha in two sectors, Puno and Ramis); a Ramsar wetland of international importance in both Peru and Bolivia |
| Recorded in the Peruvian reserve | 159 animal species (105 birds, more than 26 fish, 15 mammals, 9 amphibians, 4 reptiles) and 171 plants |
| Found nowhere else | The Titicaca water frog, the Titicaca grebe and 23 species of Orestias killifish |
| Brought in | Rainbow trout (1940) and the Argentine silverside, which reached the lake around 1955 |
Totora: the reed everything depends on
Totora is a tall sedge that grows in water less than about 3 m deep, and it rings the shallow bays of the lake. It covers most of the area of the national reserve.
People build with it: the Uros make their floating islands, houses and boats from totora, and the pale base of a fresh stem is peeled and eaten. Cattle eat it too. Farmers also rake up llachu, the soft waterweed that grows underwater, as fodder.
For wildlife the reed beds are everything. Grebes and coots nest in them, fish spawn among the stems, and frogs hunt along the bottom. Read more about how the Uros islands are built and the totora boats.
The Titicaca water frog
The lake’s most famous animal is a frog that never leaves the water. Telmatobius culeus has baggy folds of skin that let it absorb oxygen straight from the cold water, which earned it the joking nickname “scrotum frog”. A 1960s expedition led by Jacques Cousteau reported individuals up to 60 cm long with legs outstretched and weighing 1 kg.
It is now listed as Endangered by the IUCN. It is collected for food, its eggs and young are eaten by introduced trout, and pollution has killed it in large numbers: in October 2016 an estimated 10,000 were found dead in the Coata River, which drains into the lake north of Puno. You are very unlikely to see one in the wild, because they live on the lake bottom. Our guide to the Titicaca frog has more.
The Titicaca grebe
The Titicaca grebe cannot fly. It runs across the water flapping its short wings when it needs to move fast. It lives almost only on Lake Titicaca and a few nearby lakes, including Umayo, next to the Sillustani towers, and Arapa.
It is listed as Endangered. The biggest threat is the nylon gill nets that arrived in the 1990s, in which grebes dive for fish and drown. A 2003 survey estimated a little over 2,500 birds.
Fish: native killifish and newcomers
Most of the lake’s native fish are small killifish of the genus Orestias, and 23 species are found only in Lake Titicaca. Fishermen know them by local names: the small, silvery ispi is fried whole and eaten like whitebait, and the carachi is a staple in lakeside kitchens. The lake also has native catfish, the suche and the mauri.
The largest killifish, the Titicaca orestias, grew to more than 20 cm. It has not been seen since 1938 and is thought to be extinct.
Two fish brought in from outside changed the lake:
- Rainbow trout were introduced in 1940 and took over. Trout is now farmed in floating cages around Puno, and it is the fish on most menus. See Lake Titicaca’s trout, from water to table.
- The silverside (pejerrey), from Argentina, was released in Bolivia’s Lake Poopó in 1946 and reached Lake Titicaca through the Desaguadero River around 1955. It eats the native ispi.
Both are blamed for the decline of the native fish.
Birds
The Peruvian part of the reserve has recorded 105 bird species. On a boat trip from Puno you will usually see Andean gulls following the boats, puna ibises and coots in the reed beds, and, with luck, the tiny, brightly coloured many-coloured rush tyrant clinging to a reed stem. Chilean flamingos and Andean lapwings visit the shallow bays and shores.
On the islands and the shore
The terraced islands of Amantaní and Taquile are farmed for potatoes, oca, quinoa and broad beans, much as they have been for centuries. The lake keeps the islands slightly milder than the mainland.
The red, bell-shaped kantuta (Cantua buxifolia) is the national flower of both Peru and Bolivia, and grows in gardens and on hillsides around the lake. The tall eucalyptus trees on the islands and the shore are not native; they came from Australia.
On land you may see vizcachas, rabbit-like rodents of the rocky hillsides, especially around Sillustani. Llamas, alpacas and sheep graze the shore. Andean foxes are about, but shy.
What threatens the lake’s wildlife
- Pollution. Untreated waste from Puno reaches the bay, and the Coata River carries waste from Juliaca. A 2011 United Nations report found high levels of cadmium, arsenic and lead in parts of the lake.
- Introduced fish. Trout and silverside compete with and eat native fish and frogs.
- Fishing nets. Gill nets drown grebes.
- Changing water levels. Lower water exposes the totora beds that so much depends on.
Where to see it from Puno
- The Uros floating islands: totora beds, coots and gulls, close to Puno on our Uros floating islands tour.
- Sillustani: Lake Umayo’s birds and the vizcachas on the rocks, on our Sillustani half-day tour.
- Amantaní and Taquile: terraced farmland and island gardens on our two-day Uros, Amantaní and Taquile tour.
More on the region’s nature is in our guide to Puno’s biodiversity.
Frequently asked questions
What animals live in Lake Titicaca?
The best known are the Titicaca water frog and the flightless Titicaca grebe, both found almost nowhere else. The lake also has 23 species of native killifish, native catfish, introduced trout and silverside, and more than 100 species of birds.
Are there fish in Lake Titicaca?
Yes. Native killifish such as the ispi and carachi, native catfish, and two introduced species: rainbow trout, now farmed around Puno, and the silverside, or pejerrey.
What is the giant frog of Lake Titicaca?
The Titicaca water frog, Telmatobius culeus. It lives its whole life underwater and breathes through folds of loose skin. It is Endangered.
Are there seahorses in Lake Titicaca?
No. Seahorses live only in the sea, and Lake Titicaca is fresh water.
What plants grow in Lake Titicaca?
Mainly totora reed in the shallows, and submerged waterweeds that locals call llachu. On the islands and shore you will see crops, the kantuta flower and introduced eucalyptus.
Sources
- Titicaca National Reserve species counts and area: Andina (2018)
- Introduction of trout and silverside: Eju.tv
- Titicaca water frog, Titicaca grebe and Lake Titicaca, Wikipedia
Written by Sreeram Hariharan, founder of Planet Odysseys, a tour operator based in Cusco and Puno. Updated October 2026.