There are some amazing animals in the world. Some of the neatest ones to look at are the ones that you can see-through. The jellyfish, for example, is a really cool example of an animal that you can see but you can also see through it. But not all transparent animals out there in the world were born that way. Some of them were made that way in a lab!
One of the trends right now is the trend towards intentionally breeding see-through animals. Two examples of see-through animals that were made in a lab are a see-through frog and a clear goldfish. One argument for trying to breed such animals is to allow students and researchers to gain an understanding of the inner workings of animals without actually having to dissect them.
Of course, there are always questions when it comes to the effect of doing strange things to animals in a lab. We don’t yet know the long-term effects of causing animals to become see-through. And we’re a long way from allowing for the creation of see-through mammals. But this is a trend that may be here to stay if for no other reason than there’s something magical and interesting about transparent animals.
Returning to the natural world, some of the most stunning creatures evolved to be transparent because it aided them in evading predators. One of my favorites (besides the jellyfish) is the clearwing butterfly. If I ever get a chance to travel to Costa Rica then I hope I’ll be able to catch an in-person glimpse of these pretty creatures with see-through wings. The sea cucumber, crayfish and squid are other examples of animals that can come in see-through varieties in nature. Sometimes nature is so smart!
Tags: see-through animals, translucent animals, transparent animals
