According to a [[witness]], "toads swell up to three-and-a-half times their normal size before blowing up". It is unlikely that a toad, however bluffy, could inhale and store so much [[air]].
toads dont explode
==Explanations==
Berlin [[veterinarian]] Franz Mutschmann collected corpses and performed autopsies. From his work, it was determined that the phenomenon was linked to a recent influx of predatory [[crow]]s to the area. The cause was a mixture of crow attacks and the natural puff up defense of the toads. Crows attacked the toads to pick through the skin between the amphibian's chest and abdominal cavity, picking out the liver, which appears to be a delicacy for crows in the area. In a defensive move, the toads begin to blow themselves up, which in turn, due to the hole in the toad's body and the missing liver, led to a rupture of blood vessels and lungs, and to the spreading of intestines. The apparent epidemic nature of the phenomenon was also explained by Mutschmann: "Crows are intelligent animals. They learn very quickly how to eat the toads' livers."
Previous explanations included a [[virus|viral]] or [[fungus|fungal]] infection, possibly one also affecting foreign [[horse]]s involved in [[horse racing|racing]] at a nearby track. However, laboratory tests were unable to detect an infectious agent.<ref>{{cite news
| title =Hungry crows may be behind exploding toads
| work =msnbc.com
| publisher =Microsoft
| date =2005-04-28
| url =http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7654561/
| accessdate = 2007-11-22}}</ref> Danish biologists suggested [[pesticides]] as an explanation. Yet another explanation was that increased [[ultraviolet radiation]] caused by [[ozone depletion]] was to blame.
Another opinion was that the eye witness accounts were flawed, confused, or mistaken.
