The willows on the shore are showing their first fresh green, a pair of mallards is reflected in the dark water, making their rounds together on the "pool of death". That's what tabloid newspapers called the pond on Stadionstrasse in Hamburg's Altona district after an animal drama that took place there in spring 2005 that is still a mystery to this day.
"When I arrived at the rainwater retention basin early in the morning, I saw a number of toads frantically paddling out of the water onto land," remembers Werner Smolnik from the Naturschutzbund (NABU) Hamburg-Altona. "They made unnatural sounds, it was more of a scream than a croak. They puffed themselves up and some burst so violently that the innards squirted out." He even got something on his knee.
Almost 1,000 dead toads
Walkers also noticed the strange events. "They were just as shocked because the carcasses of the animals that had burst open were lying around everywhere," says Smolnik. At the time, the 68-year-old counted around 1,000 dead toads. He alerted the civil engineering department, which sent a biologist. "But neither of us could make sense of what was going on."
In the days that followed, authorities cordoned off the pond, which is also popular with dog walkers, with safety tape to prevent the spread of a possible disease or exposure to a poison. "Entering the adjoining areas is prohibited," said a warning sign.
The international press and "Dittsche" reported
Also material for comedy:"Dittsche" aka Olli Dittrich was afraid of "torpedo toads" in "Das really true life" in 2005.In addition to the German press, foreign media such as the BBC, "USA Today" and "The Independent" soon reported on the mysterious events at the pond in Altona. Even "Dittsche" raved about the "torpedo toads" in his Eppendorf pub. The pressure on the authorities to clarify things grew:What made the toads die so miserably? A poison? A germ, a parasite or a fungus? A new virus that might be spreading fast?
The Institute for Hygiene and Environment sent its experts into the race. They examined water samples for dangerous bacteria and toxins, for pesticides and fertilizers - without finding anything unusual. Water fleas and aquarium fish were placed in the sample water and survived the procedure unscathed. Official veterinarians examined the carcasses and initially found no abnormalities - apart from an injury on the side below the costal arch.
Hitchcock-style explanation
The Berlin veterinarian Frank Mutschmann, who was in Hamburg for a specialist conference, also heard about the case and took a few living and dead animals from the scene of the crime to his practice for examination. For the amphibian expert, the cause was quickly determined:"Crows were after the livers of the toads, pecked at the skin and pulled out the treat."
As a defense mechanism, the sluggish amphibians puffed themselves up, and the innards burst out from the injury. In some cases, however, the internal organs were also pulled out directly by the crows. The authorities in Hamburg finally adopted the explanation à la Hitchcock.
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- Part 1:Almost 1,000 Dead Toads
- Part 2:Doubting the Gourmet Theory