Throughout different countries of the world, “Frog or Fish Rain” is a phenomenon where in the
event of a hurricane or a tornado, the winds could possibly be strong enough to pick up living
objects from the ground so that they fall out of the sky. This makes it possible for frogs or a
school of fish to get dragged from strong winds to rain out of the sky. It is more likely for smaller
living organisms (such as frogs or fish) to rain from the sky since they have smaller mass and
weight compared to larger organisms (cows or horses). In the article by the Science Reference
Section, Library of Congress entitled Can It Rain Frogs, Fish, or Other Objects, strong winds, such as those in a tornado or hurricane, are powerful enough to lift animals, people, trees, and houses.
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| Tim Osborn, NOAA photographer. National | Weather Service (NWS) Collection, NOAA Photo Library |
The first report was made about this raining frogs and fish phenomenon on
July 12, 1873. Charles Fort was the individual who made the report about seeing frogs rain from
the skies. He made a collection of his reports in “The Book of the Damned”: “A shower of frogs
which darkened the air and covered the ground for a long distance is the reported result of a
recent rainstorm at Kansas City, Mo.”
Can it Rain Fish or Frogs?
A video explaining the process of how frogs or fish can get picked up in strong wind
conditions presented by Aaron Shafer for WeatherBug Schools.
In 1901, a rainstorm in Minneapolis, MN produced frogs to a depth of several inches, so that
travel was said to be impossible. Fish famously fell from the sky in Singapore in 1861, and again
over a century later in Ipswich, Australia in 1989. Residents in southern Greece awoke one
morning in 1981 to find that a shower of frogs had blanketed their village. Golfers in
Bournemouth, England found herring all over their course after a light shower in 1948. In 1901,
a huge rainstorm doused Tiller's Ferry, SC, and covered it with catfish as well as water, to the
point that fish were found swimming between the rows of a cotton field. In 1953, Leicester, MA
was hit with a downpour of frogs and toads of all sorts, even choking the rain gutters on the roofs
of houses. RAINING FROGS AND FISH (https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4170) goes on and on:
More frogs in Missouri in 1873 and Sheffield, England in 1995, and more fish in Alabama in
1956.
Works Cited:
Brian Dunning, “It’s Rain Frogs and Fish”, Skeptoid, Podcast #170, 8 Sep. 2009.
https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4170. This article by Brian Dunning explains the reasoning
behind storms of frogs and fish falling from the sky.
Science Reference Section, Library of Congress, “Can it rain frogs, fish, and other objects?”
Everyday Mysteries, 19 Nov. 2019.https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/meteorology-climatology/item/can-it-rain-frogsfish-
and-other-objects/. This article by Library of Congress explains that severe winds
such as a tornado or hurricane are strong enough to lift animals, people, trees, and houses.
Science Journalist, “Raining Frogs & Fish: A Whirlwind of Theories” Science Atlas 29, May.
2021. https://science-atlas.com/culture/raining-frogs-fish-a-whirlwind-of-theories/. This
article by Science Journalist, states that Charles Fort was an early collector of reports
about strange phenomena of raining frogs and fish.
WeatherBug “Schools Can it Rain Fish and Frogs?” Youtube, 23 May. 2012.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnFKGja2Vz0 . In this video by WeatherBug Schools,
Meteorologist Aaron Shafer explains the process of how frogs and fish can fall out of the
sky.
Dr. Joseph Golden “Multiple waterspouts off the Bahamas Islands” National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration. https://www.noaa.gov/digital-collections/search/item?f
%5B0%5D=ngdl_affiliation%3A2240&f
%5B1%5D=ngdl_category_level_1%3A2409&page=18. This Photo taken by Dr. Joseph
Golden shows multiple waterspouts off the Bahamas Islands.
For Further Research:
Brian Dunning, “It’s Rain Frogs and Fish”, Skeptoid, Podcast #170, 8 Sep. 2009.
https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4170. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024. The author talks about how
newspapers and books have published information of people from all over the world
being hit by large numbers of frogs and fish from the sky. Dunning states that in the
weather conditions could be during heavy rainstorms or during clear blue sky in
Minneapolis, MN in 1901, Tiller's Ferry, SC in 1901, Leicester, MA in 1953, Ipswich,
Australia in 1989, Missouri in 1873, Sheffield, England in 1995, Bournemouth, England,
Alabama in 1956. The purpose of this podcast is to show that in many different parts of
the world there are reported cases of fish and frogs falling from the sky due to the
combination of migration or grouping of the animals and heavy storms and winds.
Edward Green, “How can it rain fish?” BBC News Friday, 20 Aug. 2004.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/3582802.stm. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024.
Edward Green provides an interesting weather phenomena where there have been
sightings of raining fish from strong tornadoes and hails frogs in the United Kingdom.
The purpose of this website is to show people raining frogs and fish can happen all
around the world including Britain.
Sam Mauhay-Moore, “Anchovies are reportedly raining from the sky across San Francisco”,
SFSGATE, 28 June 2022. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/raining-fish-in-sanfrancisco-
17272717.php. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024. The author provides readers with
evidence of Fish falling from the sky in areas of San Francisco due to the increase of
Anchovy populations. The purpose of this article is to inform readers that environmental
changes seabirds’ predation is leading to large numbers of fish in the area being picked up
and falling from the sky.
Science Journalist, “Raining Frogs & Fish: A Whirlwind of Theories” Science Atlas 29 May.
2021 https://science-atlas.com/culture/raining-frogs-fish-a-whirlwind-of-theories/. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024. The author provides historical information recorded back in the
1800’s about the strange phenomenon of frogs, fish, or worms raining from the sky. The
purpose of this article is to show the reader that raining animals and other objects is more
common than you think and that it is mainly the smaller animals that can get swept up by
strong winds, tornadoes, and hurricanes.
Science Reference Section, Library of Congress, “Can it rain frogs, fish, and other objects?”
Everyday Mysteries, 19 Nov. 2019.
https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/meteorology-climatology/item/can-it-rain-frogsfish-
and-other-objects/. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024. The author explains the crazy
phenomenon where it can rain frogs, fish, and other objects. The article includes good
summaries of how this event can take place. The summaries are included with visual
descriptions as proof of what individuals were reporting. The purpose of
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