It turns out that this is how glass frogs make their bodies transparent

JAKARTA – Fleischmann’s glass frog (Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni) have camouflage abilities to help them hide from voracious predators. At night, they generally hide in dark places to escape predator .

During the day, the green pigmentation of the skin helps them blend into a background such as leaves.

However, Duke University scientist Carlos Taboada has discovered a unique fact. When Fleischmann’s glass frog is dozing, his body becomes transparent. Indeed, almost to the point of being completely transparent.

“Glass frogs are famous for their abdominal muscles and skin which is very transparent through which bones and other organs are visible,” Taboada wrote in their article.

“We found that this fabric transmits more than 90-95 percent of visible light. This transparency can camouflage glass frogs from predators when they sleep on leaves during the day,” she added.

Presumably, the red blood cells that circulate throughout the frog’s body can make even transparent tissue opaque. For this reason, the phenomenon of transparency is extremely rare in terrestrial animals. This makes the glass frog an exception.

Taboada studied 11 Fleischmann glass frogs and used calibrated color photography to repeatedly measure their transparency at different times: while asleep, while awake, calling for a mate, after exercise, and under anesthesia.

The researchers found that the frogs maintained roughly the same level of transparency while awake, mating, exercising, and under anesthesia.

However, when they sleep, their bodies become 34 to 61 percent more transparent than when they wake up. How do they do this? Through optical spectroscopy on 13 frogs, the results show that there is a decrease in the circulation of red blood cells.

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“Red blood circulation decreased by 89 percent and red blood cell signals were concentrated in the liver,” Taboada said.

“To sleep safely, the frog absorbs most of its red blood cells in the liver. When they wake up, the red blood cells start circulating normally and can go about their normal activities. This is amazing,” she added.

So, glass frogs can decide when they want to be transparent to avoid predators, such as when they’re resting.

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