THE CRYSTAL FROG

Before coming to work in Tesoro Escondido Reserve, I was terrified of frogs. I remember that when I was at home with my family, sometimes frogs would venture inside. My brother would catch them and he would chase me until I cried.

As time went by I understood that fear was generated by ignorance and myths that people have about frogs. For example, people say that if you touch them, you would get warts; that if they urinate on your hand, your body will be covered with white spots.

Then everything changed when I started working in the Reserve. Now they are my favorites, especially the Atrato Glass Frog (Hyalinobatrachium aureoguttatum).

I was part of a project to study them; I needed to hold them in my hands to observe them in detail, to identify them and to take their photos. They are my pampered specie due to the importance they have as environmental indicators. They only inhabit well-preserved forests where water and air are not contaminated. If we don’t see them we should worry because it means that something is not right in the ecosystem.

Let me introduce you to you my favorite, the Atrato Glass Frog, (Hyalinobatrachium aureoguttatum). It has a bright green dorsal coloration with yellow spots; its belly is transparent. Through its skin you can clearly see its red heart, digestive tract, liver and white bones. Its iris is silver towards the center of the eye, and yellow at the edges with numerous black dots. It is nocturnal and arboreal; it likes primary, secondary forest and lives near streams. The females place its eggs on the lower surfaces of the leaves, from where their tadpoles subsequently fall.

Escrito por: Vanessa Moreira

Parabióloga de la Reserva Tesoro Escondido