Friday, June 12, 2009

As Rainy Season Begins, a Mysterious Shower of Tadpoles

Rainy season officially began here in Japan on June 10th. We've been lucky in that while the season may have started, the rains themselves seem to be holding off until tomorrow or the beginning of the week. But more important than the upcoming month of almost constant downpours and frequent cockroach attacks are the reports coming in from Ishikawa prefecture of people finding dead fish and tadpoles in areas where there are no habitats for them. One hundred tadpoles in Nanao and Hakusan last week, tiny fish in Nakanoto, tadpoles again in Nanao and Wajima.

Theories? Some think birds dropped them, others speculate on water spouts or strong winds. My best guess is some human agent is involved, perhaps a lone prankster or a group of jokers (at least one expert quoted in the story agrees with me). If you remember, last November police in Osaka arrested a nutcase for releasing beetle larvae on a train to make women "get scared and shake their legs." Maybe this is the beginning of a new trend of creepy-crawly guerilla improv or performance art of some kind.

The Mystery Tadpoles of Japan, my friends.

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