(dramatic music)
- [Mark] In the rainforest of Costa Rica
lives a ghost.
One that we have been chasing for many years.
Yet, it has alluded us
time and again.
But tonight,
that's all about to change.
Hear that?
Oh, guys!
- [Mario] Oh, my God.
(animal snarls) (dramatic percussive music)
(animal roars)
- Hey, everybody, I'm Mark Laivins, and welcome back
to another special adventure brought to you by B&H Photo.
Tonight, we're going out in the jungle
looking for a ghost.
No, not a paranormal ghost, a living ghost,
one that we will actually find
if we can locate its habitat.
This animal loves moving water,
so in order to find out where we need to hike tonight,
we need to use the light of day
and our drone to see where the stream systems exist
on this property.
First things first,
before we can fly the drone, we've gotta set it up.
And today, we are flying the DJI Mavic 2 Pro.
This is a really awesome drone.
But for us today,
it's more of a reconnaissance tool
so we can see the area that we're gonna be
adventuring in tonight.
And lift off.
(drone whirring)
All right, we are up in the sky.
Oh, man, you know what?
There's like all kinds of clouds coming in right now.
This actually looks gorgeous.
Check that out.
So glass frogs, an aboreal frog
that lives up off the ground,
love river systems because that's where
they lay their eggs and develop their tadpoles.
Now, if we can locate water,
there's a pretty good chance
that we could put ourselves there
and listen for the calls of the glass frog,
and then locate the ghost glass frog.
Okay, I'm gonna fly due east,
and we wanna mark the ridges
and the approximate distance
to get to these streams and rivers
and hopefully get eyes - Okay.
- [Mark] on one of the streams
that's closest to us as a starting point.
And we want to maybe sketch the shape
and some distinct features. - Sure.
- to help us get there. - Okay.
- [Mark] So you see the ridge right in front of us.
We'll call that Ridge 1.
And there's definitely a secondary ridge over top of it.
- Okay. - And this is the great
part about scouting with a drone,
you really can see the topography
in an area like Costa Rica
which is very mountainous and hilly
and just confusing at night.
I mean, right Mario.
- You can easily - Yeah.
- get turned around
out there in the jungle,
but by having a map at our aid,
it's going to make tonight's expedition
that much more efficient.
This vegetation is dense.
Even from the sky, it is difficult
to see anything in those trees.
(dramatic music)
That's water.
Got it.
So you see the way that curves around.
- Yeah. - So over Ridge 1,
and then on the downside of Ridge 2,
the stream comes from the south
and goes just north
and then bends back west.
- Yep. - And then you see
that cluster of rocks? - Yep.
I think that can be our kinda landmark,
maybe our entry way.
- [Mark] Based on the fact that that was
over 2,500 meters of flight,
we're gonna estimate to get down here
because of the terrain up and down,
that's gonna be about another two kilometers.
- Okay. - Three kilometers
total in hiking tonight.
- Okay. - And then you have a compass
on your watch, which will really come in handy.
- [Mario] Yep, so I've got the map.
We know where the stream is at.
All we gotta do is wait until it gets dark.
And of course, bring that drone back.
- I hear it.
There it is, yeah.
So we did a manned launch
and right now we're going to do a catch landing.
This is not for a novice drone pilot.
(drone whirring)
Got ya.
All right, well that's a wrap on recon.
Let's head back and wait for darkness.
(ominous music)
As you can see, night has descended upon us.
And it's time to search the rainforest
for the ghost glass frog.
Let's turn our headlamps on
and hit the trail.
(insects chirping)
I'm scanning around, I'm listening.
I do hear something coming from over here.
I think I hear a call.
Hear that?
It's coming from right up here, let's check this out.
(dramatic music) (insects chirping)
Oh, yep, right there. (bright music)
Look at that.
Our first glass frog, cool.
Now, first things first,
I'm just gonna leave him alone for a second
so I can get my hands wet.
I don't wanna handle a frog with dry hands.
Let me see if I can get this frog
off it's perch.
Come here, little guy.
Perfect.
There we go.
Okay.
This is not the ilex or the ghost glass frog,
but it's actually one of the smallest species
of glass frog here in Costa Rica.
And it's the spinosa glass frog.
Otherwise known as the dwarf glass frog.
One of the first distinct characteristics
you will notice about the glass frog
is besides being that really cool translucent green,
is their eyes are actually set forward
as opposed to the side
like we'd see in a red-eyed leaf frog
or some of the other frogs
that we hatch here in Costa Rica.
And that forward set eye pattern
is what gives him that really cool
Kermit the frog look that they're so famous for.
I think we've had it off its leaf for long enough,
let's put it back and keep searching.
We've got a long night ahead of us
if we're gonna find that ghost.
We've gone about a kilometer east so far,
and we know our final destination
or the water source that we're looking for
is about three kilometers east.
It looks like we need to go a little northeast.
Mario, you seeing that?
- Yep, according to my compass on my watch,
yeah, if we go in this direction,
it'll be kinda slightly northeast,
and then I think we'll get on that eastern trail as well.
- It's funny, when you first step foot off trail,
there's always this sensation that comes over you.
It's just like a heightened awareness.
Walking on the trail feels safe,
walking off the trail feels hazardous,
just by nature, so you tend to move
a little bit more deliberately
and you just, you see more.
It's really an awesome thing to get off trail.
You've got a little bit of groundwater starting here.
That means the bigger stream is definitely nearby.
Let's head off here and get to the start of the stream.
(bright music)
- (gasps) Dude, fer-de-lance. - Where?
- Huge. - Let me see.
- [Mario] Holy smokes.
- [Mark] Look at his head.
Whoa! - Oh, my God.
Huff.
That is a formidable snake, right there.
Good spot, Mario.
You want the snake hook?
- [Mario] Uh, no, I don't think we're gonna mess with it.
I'm just gonna get a nice shot of it.
So the fer-de-lance relies on
its cryptic coloration
to blend into the environment.
And an animal in this position
could stay and wait for hours
without moving a single a muscle.
The name of the game is waiting
when you're an ambush predator.
And a snake like this has all the time in the world
to wait for an unsuspecting prey item.
(dramatic music)
- That is exactly why you have to watch
every single step you take out here
because your next step could be
on something like that fer-de-lance.
And that would be a very bad day for us.
(dramatic music)
It looks like it's flattening out a little bit
which good news for us.
We can really start looking.
I just heard a glass frog, guys.
Up this way.
It's a very quick chirp.
It's like a (chirps).
(insects chirping)
Here that? (chirps)
Oh!
Guys!
We got one.
Yes, oh, man, I knew I heard one.
All right, here we go.
Hands wet.
Gonna gently
(dramatic music)
just take it off the leaf.
I am so excited to show you this frog.
And you're going to see why
we came all this way to show you
the ghost of the rainforest,
the ghost glass frog.
How cool are those eyes?
So cryptic and so unique.
In my opinion, this frog
has the coolest eyes in all of frogs
in Central and South America.
And we're gonna break out the lights,
we're gonna break out the macro lens,
and we're gonna bring you in close
so you can get a good look
at why this frog is so special.
Mario, you got the macro lens ready to go?
- [Mario] Yep, got the lens and the EOS R on the tripod.
- And I've got the ghost glass frog.
Oh, lookin' right at ya.
I think it sees its reflection in your lens here
and is like, "Who's that?
"That looks like me."
(bright music)
- Hey, buddy. - Let me help you
there, Mario.
- Okay.
Back it up just a little bit.
Right there.
- [Mark] Trying to remain as still as I possibly can
for Mario's shot right now,
so everyone at home can see those magnificent eyes.
They look cool? - Yeah.
They're kind of reticulated.
So they've got this pattern on them.
I'm gonna pause there.
Let's try to get a different angle on him.
- [Mark] Okay, just careful nudge it this way.
- How's he doing?
Is he doing good? - Oh, my goodness, the frog--
- That's good. - Oh, that's cool.
- Let's get that, let's get its little pads.
- Yeah. - So this species
does not have a completely transparent ventrum.
However, I could see a little bit
of the white sheath of intestinal track
inside of its stomach.
And I could actually see like
a beating of the heart.
- I'm glad you brought that up, Mario,
because a lot of people think that all glass frogs
have a completely transparent stomach,
and that is not true.
In fact, it is more of the exception than the rule
when that does occur.
Now, if you have seen our previous glass frog episode,
that was a species
with a completely clear ventrum side,
where you could actually see the heart beating
and the blood flowing through the frog,
which was pretty amazing.
Another cool thing about the ghost glass frog,
it is actually the largest species
of glass frog in Costa Rica.
So, kinda fitting that we started tonight
with the dwarf glass frog or the spinosa,
which is the smallest,
and we land on the ghost glass frog,
which is the biggest.
But still pretty small.
Mm, it's winkin' at you.
I think he just complimented you, Mario.
He's like, wink, that's a great shot.
Well I hope you see now
why is was worth the effort
to come all the way down here
to find the ghost of the rainforest,
the ghost glass frog.
And I do wanna give a special thank you
to our friends at B&H Photo
for sponsoring this episode,
and putting together a number of amazing deal packages
for everybody at home.
So if you go to http://www.bhphoto.com/brave right now,
you can take advantage of those exclusive offers.
Oh, and don't forget,
if you haven't subscribed yet,
make sure to hit that subscribe button
and the notification bell
so you don't miss another adventure
with me and crew.
I'm Mark Laivins, be brave,
stay wild.
We'll see ya next time.
All right, let's put this guy back on his leaf
and head home.
(bright music)
If you enjoyed the search for the ghost glass frog,
then definitely go and check out
an exclusive video featuring another rare species
by clicking the join button and becoming a member
of the Brave Wilderness Channel.
Look at how awesome the pattern
on the back of that frog is.
(dramatic music) (animal growls)
(birds shrieking and chirping)