Its transparent, jelly-like and almost colorless octopus body Vitreledonella richardi, which lives in the tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans, tries to keep it as vertical as possible. The light that descends to the very bottom of the ocean, although dim, is directed and is able to declassify even the most disguised of its inhabitants. And the vertical way of movement helps the octopus to avoid direct sunlight and almost not cast a shadow.
Richard E. Young
All that can be seen inside the transparent torso is the digestive system and the esophagus, around which the brain is located in the shape of a donut. The brain of octopuses is one of the most developed among invertebrates, as evidenced by the rudiments of the bark. The eyes of Vitreledonella richardi are unusual, sticking up on thin legs. This arrangement of the eyes, as well as their rectangular shape, work great for camouflage.
The octopus determines the edibility or inedibility of prey with the help of taste buds, the number of which on each of the eight tentacles can reach ten thousand. Octopuses capture their prey - mollusks, fish and crustaceans - with all tentacles at the same time and, holding it with suckers, bite. Its salivary glands secrete poison that penetrates the victim when bitten.
Richard E. Young
In the matter of procreation, these octopuses adhere to their own know-how. Unlike males of other species, which separate from the body and transfer the hectocotyl (a modified tentacle with sperm) to the females, males of Vitreledonella richardi mate by direct sexual contact, and their hectocotyl always remains with them.
TRANSPARENT ANIMALS.
The first thing that comes to mind is transparent jellyfish.
Most jellyfish are indeed almost transparent because they are 95% water.But not all! There are more than two hundred species of jellyfish, and some of them are completely opaque...
There is a miracle fish in the world with a transparent head - Macropinna microstoma (small-mouthed micropinna). These fish live at a depth of more than a kilometer, and for a long time scientists could not study them, because when rising to the surface, micropins died - which is usual for us Atmosphere pressure deadly for the deep beings.
Only recently have American biologists been able to observe the behavior of fish in a deep-sea aquarium using underwater cameras.
I bet this fish is not what you thought? Look at the picture again: the tubular eyes of the fish are entirely located inside the head and are covered with two green lenses that are visible through the transparent shell of the head, and the two dark spots near the mouth are not eyes, but olfactory organs, similar to human nostrils!
In addition to unusual eyes that look right through their heads, fish with a transparent head have several other features that allow these fish to best adapt to their habitat. "Relying" on large flat fins, they can "hang" motionless in the water column. In addition, due to the fins, fish with a transparent head control their movements very precisely. This ability helps to hunt: fish with a transparent head have a very small mouth, and when attacking, it is important for them to immediately grab the prey.
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In the bottomless depths of the ocean, there is also a transparent octopus - Vitreledonella richardi (glass octopus). The long, pointed body of glass octopuses is gelatinous, like that of jellyfish, and almost colorless.
And in the warm tropical seas, a living transparent ribbon floats, snake-like bending the body - the Venus belt.
The Venus belt is an animal from the ctenophores class, a predator that feeds on plankton. The transparent body of the Venus belt has the form of a flat gelatinous ribbon up to 1.5 meters long and 8 centimeters thick. In the middle, along the narrow edge of the tape, a slit-like mouth opening is visible; the Venus belt floats due to the movement of small bristles - rowing plates. This animal has a special balance organ, thanks to which the living tape can move. The Venus belt lives usually at shallow depths.
By the way, you don't have to be a scientist or a scuba diver to see a transparent fish! You can get at home a transparent inhabitant of freshwater aquariums - a glass catfish.
Glass catfish are small schooling fish that need to be brought in at once, 6-10 pieces, so that they feel comfortable in the aquarium. Glass catfish are so transparent that algae are clearly visible through them. Opaque only the skeleton and a small area behind the head, where everything fits internal organs fish.
Homeland of glass catfish - Southeast Asia. Moreover, every glass catfish living in Russia was born somewhere in India, because no one knows how to artificially breed this transparent fish in aquariums!
More recently, scientists have learned to use the transparency of animals for research purposes. After all, through the transparent skin you can observe how different processes in a living organism proceed in time. Particularly useful can be transparent laboratory animals for studying the development of tumors of internal organs. Therefore, geneticists specially bred transparent laboratory fish and frogs!
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"What is what." |
Looking at this deep-sea dweller, you will not immediately understand who he is. Almost colorless, completely transparent body, characteristic unhurried vertical swimming indicate that this is a jellyfish. But appearance deceptive - this is a real octopus, albeit a very unusual one.
Vitreledonella richardi or glass octopus- a unique representative of deep-sea or bottom octopuses, the only species in the Vitreledonellidae family.
The jelly-like body of this mollusk is almost transparent and, with the exception of some internal organs, is devoid of coloring pigments. All that can be seen through a body transparent as glass is digestive system and an impressive brain, shaped like a torus. The latter, by the way, is so great for a reason: octopuses, and Vitreledonella richardi in particular, are the smartest invertebrates on our planet, their brain is able to analyze, adapt, remember and even learn.
The dimensions of the glass octopus are average: mantle - up to 11 cm, total body length - up to 45 cm, weight - up to 450 grams. The upper three pairs of tentacles are quite long and almost equal to each other, the fourth pair is almost half as long. The suckers are small, arranged in only one row (usually in three rows) and, moreover, rather weak, but he doesn’t need others: he hunts small prey. Taste buds are located on each of the eight tentacles, with their help the mollusk determines the suitability of a particular prey. The structure of the eyes in V. richardi is also very unusual; the eyes, located on long thin stalks, are widely spaced and always directed upwards.
Glass octopuses are found almost everywhere in tropical and subtropical waters with a relatively deep bottom (about 100 meters and deeper).
The vast majority of octopuses reproduce without direct sexual contact - by transferring to females a modified tentacle with sperm, a hectocotyl, separated from the body. Males of transparent octopuses fertilize females during direct contact. The female lays up to several hundred eggs, which she guards under her mantle. V. richardi newborns are only 2.2 mm long.
Wonders of nature!
Take a very close look at these wondrous living beings. Why very carefully? Because they are transparent and almost invisible. Do you want to know why many of them live in the sea? It is a matter of survival and self-preservation. Biologist Zenke Johnsen explains it this way: “Almost all vulnerable oceanic animals, not armed with teeth and toxins, unable to develop speed and possessing small sizes, must be partially invisible in order to survive.”
Small transparent surgeonfish
This transparent fish is a small fish-surgeon. They are found in many waters, including off the coast of New Zealand. This is the same type of fish as the Dory fish from Finding Nemo. The surgeonfish can grow up to 30cm in length and are quite popular as aquarium fish.
Salpa Maggiore
This fish was caught near the Karikari Peninsula in northern New Zealand. Experts believe that this is Salpa Maggiore (Salpa Maxima), which is commonly found in the Southern Ocean.
Transparent Frog (Hyperolius Leucotaenius)
It is a species of frog from the hopping Hyperoliidae family. In the Republic of the Congo, such a frog is considered an endemic species. At one time, it was considered completely extinct, but in 2011, a transparent jumping frog was discovered and photographed on the banks of the Elila River (a tributary of the Lualaba) during an expedition led by Eli Greenbaum from the University of Texas El Paso.
turtle beetle
This beetle is not completely transparent, but it does have a shell that is almost invisible. The purpose of the transparent outer shell is to deceive predators, since the beetle has special warning marks on its back. Turtle beetles come in many different species, and the pattern under their transparent shell can also be different, but still very beautiful.
smallmouth macropinna
Smallmouth macropinna is the only species of fish from the genus Macropinna, which belongs to the family Opisthoproctidae. The fish has a very unusual transparent and liquid-filled dome on its head through which its tubular eyes can be seen. This fish has been known to science since 1939, but until 2004 it was not possible to photograph it with high quality. Old photographs cannot convey the transparency of the fish dome, which collapses out of the water.
European eel
European eels change color several times during their lifetime. At first they are transparent, then on the sides and on the stomach they become brownish-yellow. After living in fresh river water for about 10 years, eels reach sexual maturity and go to spawn in the sea. Their eyes become larger, their sides acquire a silver color, and their bellies become white. At this stage, these fish are called silver eels.
Translucent pharaoh ants eat colored liquid
The pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis) is a small (2 mm) yellow or light brown, almost transparent ant. It is considered the most unpleasant pest living in houses. The pharaoh ant (its origin is unknown) lives in almost all parts of the world, including Europe, North and South America, Australia and Southeast Asia.
Butterfly with glass wings
The transparency of the wings of this butterfly called Greta oto (Greta oto) is the result of a combination of three properties: firstly, due to the low absorption of visible light by the tissues of its wings; secondly, due to the weak scattering of light passing through the wings; and, finally, due to the weak reflection of light falling on the surface of the wing. Adult butterflies mainly live in the Central and South America all the way to southern Chile. They can migrate long distances and have been seen as far north as Mexico and Texas.
baby octopus
This tiny octopus is only 2 centimeters in diameter, and internal organs are visible through its transparent body. He hit the lens at night at a depth off the coast of Tahiti. The orange spots on its tentacles change color and are used for camouflage.
Large-winged firefly squid
This is still a small squid, or rather a large-winged firefly squid (Ancistrocheirus lesueurii). Its transparent body is covered with peas of cells filled with pigment, and bioluminescent luminous organs are located just below the eyes. Firefly squids live in tropical and subtropical oceans at depths of 200 to 1000 meters.
glass frog
Glass frogs are frogs from the amphibian family Centrolenidae. Although the general color background of most glass frogs mostly green, or rather even lime, however, the skin of the abdomen of some members of this family is translucent. Through it, all the insides are perfectly visible, including the heart, liver and gastrointestinal tract This is where their name comes from.
ghost shrimp
Ghost shrimp is the name applied to at least three different types armored: Thalassinidea, mole shrimp living in deep burrows in the intertidal zone; Palaemonetes, small and transparent shrimp, are popular inhabitants of freshwater aquariums; and Caprellidae, slender-bodied amphipods or amphipods better known as skeleton shrimp. Ghost shrimp are often attacked by fish, even smaller ones.
Glass frog La Palma
The La Palma glass frog (Hyalinobatrachium valerioi) is a species of frog in the family Centrolenidae. They live in the central part of Costa Rica and south to Panama, as well as in the lowlands of the Pacific coast and on the slopes of the western part of Colombia and Ecuador. The abdominal surface of the frog is transparent, but the heart is covered with white tissue and is not visible.
Transparent immortal jellyfish
The immortal jellyfish (Turritopsis dohrni) is a species of small, biologically immortal jellyfish native to the Mediterranean and Japanese waters. This is one of the most famous cases in the fauna when creature, having reached puberty, is able to completely return to the colonial stage of development in the form of a polyp.
Costa Rican tadpoles
These are Costa Rican tadpoles. The spirals you see on their abdomens are not a pattern, they are neatly twisted intestines.
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