The rainy season part 1: Glass frogs
In the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica most rain falls in May to August. The fact that it rains is good for all life of course, but can be quite difficult for our biologists in the Work with Nature reserve; the paths become muddy, the laundry doesn’t dry and the project is sometimes briefly inaccessible because rivers are filling up. Are there also advantages to days of rain? Yes, there are! The frogs show themselves!
In part 1 of the photo series about the rainy season you can read all about: the glass frogs.
Glass frogs are a special group of amphibians, the small (2-4 cm) frogs have transparent bellies through which the organs are visible. To make sure their eggs are not eaten by other animals, they lay the egg packets on leaves that grow above fast flowing water. The eggs develop on the leaves and when the tadpoles are big enough they break out of their egg packets and fall into the murky water.
During the day glass frogs hide in vegetation. Only during rainy nights most species can be found singing on leaves above streams. Several species of glass frogs have been found in the foundation’s reserve, one more beautiful and endearing than the other. Below are some of the species, some of which are very poorly resistant to disturbance and pollution. Click on the image to enlarge them.
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- The tadpoles in their individual egg pockets
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- These tadpoles are (almost) fully grown and some of them drip out at the bottom.
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- Dwarf Glass Frog
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- Dwarf Glass Frog
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- Emerald Glass Frog
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- Emerald Glass Frog
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- Fleishmann’s Glass Frog typically sings while hanging upside down
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- Fleishmann’s Glass Frog
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- Granular Glass Frog
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- Granular Glass Frog
Curious about the rainy season part 2? Click here