The Beauty of a Deformed Frog

Brandon Ballengée is an “artist-biologist-environmental activist.” He has been studying the increasing instances of deformed frogs, particularly those with extra limbs, which are seem more now than should happen by chance.

Ballengée, whose research focuses on population declines and causes of deformities in amphibians, has been collecting these tiny critters from all over the world for more than 10 years. He uses enzymes to make their tissues transparent and injects colored dyes to make their bones, tissues and deformities stand out. The specimens are then posed, imaged with a high-resolution scanner and printed with water-based ink, according to Metro. His work provides an unprecedented view on this environmental issue -- and invokes empathy towards amphibians by making them look beautiful.

The pictures are from Ballengée's book, Malamp: The Occurrence of Deformities in Amphibians and are also part of an exhibit at Museum Het Domein in Sittard, Netherlands. See more of them at HuffPo Green.