The common toad is just that, common. Toads are literally everywhere. Aside from having the cool scientific name of Bufo bufo, the toad is otherwise unremarkable save for its adaptability. Oh yeah, and the fact that toads can predict earthquakes. At least, that’s what a team of British researchers from Open University have discovered.
While studying toad mating habits in Central Italy, researchers noticed a startlingly sudden drop in the toad population. Given that it was mating season and not tax season, that was startling. Then, a few days later, the area was rocked by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake. It wasn’t until after the last aftershock that the toads returned in large numbers. Lead researcher Rachel Grant theorizes that toads might either A) be more sensitive to radon gas emitted before an earth quake or B) toads might feel quivers in the earth that human’s don’t, thus they know when an earthquake is happening.
While Dr. Grant and people like me believe that science has finally proven the old wive’s tale about how animals can predict bad weather, others believe it is just a coincidence. It doesn’t seem very coincidental to me; now that scientists know what to look for, they can see if this same phenomenon happens next earthquake episode.
Tags: earthquakes, animals, unusual animals, toads, toads can predict earthquakes, predicting earthquakes, Open University, Rachel Grant, strange animal behavior
