h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/04/27/exploading.toads.ap/index.html

Apparently, in Hamburg, Germany, there are exploding toads. They swell up till they pop. No explanation has been found so far.

Personally, I would blame this on 2legs, but what other possibilities could you think of?

PS: the CNN techie who set up the link address might to well to spell check... explOAding toads, HA!

Y.

The poor toads. I've read the 'Hamburger Abendblatt', obviously, the exploding has ceased, but they still have no idea why it happened.

Sounds horrible. I really hope it wasn't someone trying to be funny. (I once heard a guy saying that as a lad, he fed some chemical to gulls at the beach which caused them to fall from the sky trailing smoke!)

Calcium Carbide the stuff that used to be used in old bike lamps. When it gets wet it produces acetylene.

Thanks WanderingAlbatross, that was the stuff in question. Wonder if something similar was happening with the poor toads? Hope not but it certainly sounds suspicious.

Om

Well, the article says they tested for all the "usual suspects," that is, fungus, viri, whatnot. I would think a major chemical pollutant like that would have shown one way or other in the tests.

Maybe the toads are just fed up (no pun intended) with life in Altona?

Y.

I'm sorry, I was talking to them, and I think they got depressed. I won't do it again. honest.

I believe you - they won't listen now anyway

dirty little toads with warts and spots on their clothes, flobbering and snurfling about by the river

When I was in high school a science teacher told us of a mostly harmless trick to play with frogs and toads. I've never actually tested it but if you find a toad on a hard surface (concrete or stone) you can apparently drop BBs in front of it and it will snap them up with its tongue. Toads will snap at any small movement thinking it's an insect. Do this enough times and it will fill up on so many BBs that it won't be able to hop.

And when you're done laughing you just pick the poor thing up by the hind legs and all the BBs pour out. Supposedly.

I'm not sure I believe him.

LET ME GUESS, ALL MY FAULT.

Well, YOU tell ME. The latest theory blames the whole thing on crows: the birds attack the toads, but only "punctuate" the toads, eating their liver and leaving them to get really agitated and pumped up. Apparently there is some valve function that no longer works after the crow attack, so the toads keep breathing, breathing, BRRREEEAAATTTTHHHIII-plop.

So the question is: what have you done to the crows?

Y.

Could there be a possible solution to Australia's Cane Toad problem lurking here?

Noggin

Are those crows native to Australia? Importing tham would probably mean that in a few years time, Australia needs and inventive ways to get rid of the predator crows...

Y.

Ah, I found a solution for Australia...

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1373913.html?menu=

"'Frogshake' is popular among native Peruvians as a stimulant that enhances male sexual performance."

Y.

I'm sure the Peruvian frogs are some species of poison dart frogs.


I seem to remember something from when I was young... Someone told me that if you stick a cigarette in a toads mouth it will keep inhaling till it pops.

I don't believe that either, but I did hear that.

Which just goes to show, smoking is lethal.

Y.