Ishikawa tadpole mystery continues as 70 more dead larvae found

Friday 12th June, 04:43 PM JST

KANAZAWA —

About 70 more dead tadpoles have been found in Ishikawa Prefecture, local officials said Friday, as the mystery over how they came to be in areas with no paddy fields or other habitats continues. The latest findings were in the cities of Nanao and Wajima on Thursday afternoon, following sightings of more than 100 dead tadpoles in Nanao and Hakusan last week and of tiny dead fish in the town of Nakanoto on Tuesday.

Two dead tadpoles were found shortly after 1 p.m. Thursday by Mayumi Tsuiki, a 38-year-old Nanao city official, on the roof and a door of a car parked in her home’s parking lot. She thought they might have been dropped by birds as there were also bird droppings around the area.

In Wajima, two piles of about 70 dead tadpoles were found around 3 p.m. Thursday by Nobutake Takada, a 67-year-old owner of a liquor shop, on a walkway of a bridge.

Masafumi Matsui, a professor at Kyoto University’s Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies who specializes in amphibians, said, ‘‘It is hard to comment without actually seeing these tadpoles…but considering the circumstances reported by the media, someone could be pulling a prank.’‘

People have speculated that the tadpoles might have fallen from the sky after being sucked up by waterspouts or carried by birds.

The local meteorological observatory, however, said there have been no reports of strong winds in the area, while ornithologists said the incidents do not seem to have been caused by birds.

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Latest 15 of 29 Total Comments Show All

IfeelImust at 11:13 PM JST - 11th June

Mentioned this to Mother on the phone (she lives in the UK). She said "so what it's raining cats and dogs here"
LHommeQuiMent at 11:43 PM JST - 11th June

I just checked wikipedia.

Raining animals is a relatively rare meteorological phenomenon, although occurrences have been reported from many countries throughout history. One hypothesis that has been furthered to explain this phenomenon is that strong winds traveling over water sometimes pick up debris such as fish or frogs, and carry them for up to several miles. However, this primary aspect of the phenomenon has never been witnessed or scientifically tested.

The animals most likely to drop from the sky in a rainfall are fish and frogs, with birds coming third.
usaexpat at 11:48 PM JST - 11th June

water spout sounds passible, I;ve heard of this happening before.
Den Den at 12:00 AM JST - 12th June

This is more proof of the evolution of species. Flying frogs may seem radical, just as flying fish(no flying pig jokes please). I guess this may anger some christians, who don't respect Darwin.
Fadamor at 02:21 AM JST - 12th June

It's obvious the fish were just chasing the tadpoles for their dinner and got stranded. Where's the mystery? :-)
Smythe at 04:25 AM JST - 12th June

I tend to go along with terebiko when he said it was probably due to lack of rain.

Here in my part of Canada we have very little rain, but nothing coming down like tadpoles or fish, as of to date. Fact a bit farther north to this inner part of B.C., it has been forest fires as the ground is so dry & things in their are were bound to happen especially over camp fires & such my tourists.
TumbleDry at 07:05 AM JST - 12th June

some kids are fooling around. we don't need to burn local witches...
relic1980 at 11:13 AM JST - 12th June

Where's Charles Fort when you need him ^_^?
Disillusioned at 09:45 PM JST - 12th June

In Wajima, two piles of about 70 dead tadpoles were found around 3 p.m.

Piles? If it were actually raining tadpoles they would not land in piles. It's gotta be pranksters. The kids in Kanazawa have nothing better to do.
LoveUSA at 10:02 PM JST - 12th June

It is the kind of prank the kids posting on this forum are able to do.
veilside at 12:31 AM JST - 13th June

While there is no exact information on how wide of an area these things have been scattered, if they've been found on a car or on the roof of a smallish building, it's likely these tadpoles were tossed about by pranksters. Think about it. If winds, water spouts, whatever - even a cargo plane - had carried these tadpoles then fallen, the area about which these would have fallen would have been extensive. No, these tadpoles were meant to be found due to their concentration in a small area. Pranksters.
DarkKnightNine at 12:46 PM JST - 13th June

Is Armageddon finally here? Mysterious things falling from the sky? Perhaps next we will see a swarm of locusts.
IfeelImust at 01:28 PM JST - 13th June

You may like to read this. But I'm willing to bet that the kids responsible for the 2nd and 3rd events are having a real good chuckle! http://www.prairieghosts.com/falls_sky.html
womanforwomen at 11:33 AM JST - 14th June

I like it when they show this news item on the tele, with the x-files theme on the background. I love Manga but its influence on the Jpeople is a bit too much.
BigInJapan at 12:47 PM JST - 17th June

I feel sorry for the all the 70 dead tadpoles and all the mosquitoes died in Ishikawa, but why don't we have as much news on swine flu as on mysterious dead tadpoles?