Glass frogs, ghost shrimp and clearwing butterflies use transparency to evade predators

Glass frogs are an amazing sight but seeing one raises an interesting question: what's the point of having transparent skin if your predators can still see you, or your internal organs?

We can see what's around us because of how different objects interact with light. If something is opaque, light is either reflected or absorbed at its surface. For something to be transparent, light must instead travel straight through it.

But as light moves between transparent materials it can be bent and scattered. Think about how a straw in a glass of water appears to bend. This is refraction, and results from the different ways that light moves through air and water.

An animal's body is made up of many organs and tissues, each with a different thickness, structure and chemical makeup. For the animal to be transparent, light must not be reflected, absorbed, scattered or refracted as it travels through each of these different layers.

Continued...
Source

David Tiller

Greta oto - Glasswing

It is known by the common name glasswing butterfly for its unique transparent wings that allow it to camouflage without extensive coloration. In Spanish speaking regions, it may also be referred to as espejitos, meaning "little mirrors" because of its transparent wings.

While its wings appear delicate, the butterfly is able to carry up to 40 times its own weight. In addition to its unique wing physiology, the butterfly is known for behaviors such as long migrations and lekking.

Source / Image Courtesy

(Image: J.M. Guayasamin et al.)

An adult male Hyalinobatrachium yaku, a new species of glass frog.

You Can See the Living Heart of This 'Glass Frog'

Source / Image Courtesy

Glass frog with translucent skin found in Costa Rica

A new species of glass frog has been found in the Talamanca mountains of Costa Rica.

The frogs are only found in certain parts of Central and South America and are known for their skin, which is so translucent that you can see their internal organs.

The Glass Frog: Ultimate Ninja Dad

A male glass frog is the lone protector of his eggs 24/7 until they hatch.

Sometimes this means protecting them from their worst enemy.

The Glass Octopus! So called because it's transparent. Not because it's made of glass. It's actually soft and gelatinous. Ice Jelly Octopus!

It's a good thing this octopus isn't made of glass because he would probably shatter in the pressure of his environment.

Also he wouldn't be able to move much unless he was constantly all hot and melted.

The Glass Octopus reaches 11 cm (4.3 in) in mantle length and 45 cm (18 in) when you include the tentacles. They live in tropical and subtropical waters across the world at depths between 165 and 1,690 metres (540 and 5,550 feet).

This is the Twilight Zone, where the Sun's light is reduced to a blue haze. Transparency therefore is a supreme camouflage if you can manage it.

Source

Image: Richard E. Young

This is a pelagic octopus, swimming through the ocean far above the sea floor. Lots of predatory fish will be looking upward from the depths, trying to discern the shadow cast by prey.

For the Glass Octopus, this means orientating their body so that their decidedly opaque digestive gland stands vertical in the water column. That way, it casts the least possible shadow.

Source / Image Courtesy

Quick facts about this rarely seen translucent cephalopod! The glass octopus