Perplexing tadpole discoveries spread beyond Ishikawa

HIROSHIMA (Kyodo) The strange phenomenon of dead tadpoles that first emerged in Ishikawa Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast seems to be spreading as more of the critters have been found in central, western and northeastern Japan over the past few days.

A 60-year-old woman in Miyoshi, Hiroshima Prefecture, found 13 dead tadpoles and a frog around 8 a.m. Monday in her garden and a nearby parking lot. They were spread across 20 meters.

The woman said she had seen news reports about the tadpole mystery but did not imagine she would witness a similar phenomenon.

On Saturday morning in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, a teacher found more than 30 dead polliwogs scattered over a 10-meter radius on the sports field at Seien Girls' High School.

In a field in Shiwa, Iwate Prefecture, a 67-year-old woman said she heard a pitter-patter sound at around 6 p.m. Saturday and soon after found about a dozen tiny fishlike creatures lying on a sheet covering crops in the field. Some of the animals were still moving, she said.

Many dead tadpoles have recently been found in Ishikawa Prefecture and the media have been widely reporting the findings as it is still not known how they got there.

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