A new species of frog discovered in Costa Rica has such translucent skin on its underside that it's possible to see its internal organs.

The species, named Hyalinobatrachium dianae, is a type of glass frog, which are only found in regions of South and Central America. In this case, six specimens of the species have been found in the tropical wet forests of Costa Rica's Caribbean foothills. The nocturnal creature is distinct from other species thanks to skin texture, colouring and the sound of its call.

Costa Rican Amphibian Research Centre


The glass frog was discovered by zoologists working at the Costa Rican Amphibian Research Centre and has been detailed in a study published in the online journal Zootaxa. While bright green on top, the delicate frog's transparent underside allowed the researchers to study the arrangement of the frog's internal organs in detail. "The bulbous liver and digestive organs are covered in white peritonea. The heart and ventral vein are blood red. Lungs transparent, but with a network of red blood vessels. The gallbladder is transparent Sulphur Yellow," they write.

The frog has been named in honour of the senior author Brian Kubicki's mother Janet Diane Kubicki, and also Diana the Roman goddess of the hunt, wild animals and woodland. "This being in relation to our own 'hunt' among Costa Rica’s mountainous forests to better understand the amphibians dwelling within," the authors explain.

Glass Frogs can be difficult to observe as they tend to inhabit vegetation high above streams and at sites with tough-to-navigate topography. The last glass frog described from Costa Rica was in 1973. The researchers believe the creature faces very limited human threats in the foreseeable future thank to the fact that very few roads grant access to the area it inhabits.