Parashat Vayera- Many Out of One

...hinei Anokhi nogeif et kol g’vul’cha batzfar’d’im. V’sharatz ha’y’or tzfar’d’im v’alu u’va’u b’veitecha uvakhadar mishka’v’cha v’al mitatecha u’v’veit a’vadecha u’v’amecha u’v’tanurecha u’v’mish’a’rotecha…. Vayeit Aharon et-yado al meimei Mitzraiyim vataal Ha’tz’fardei’a va’t’khas et-eretz Mitzraiyim

…Behold, I will strike all your borders with frogs. And the rivers will swarm with frogs, and they will go up and come into your house and into your bedroom, and on your bed, and into your servants’ home, and upon your people, and into your ovens and in your kneading troughs…. And Aaron stretched his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frog came up and covered the land of Egypt. (Shmot 7:27-28, 8:2)

Pirkei Avot (5:9) lists 10+ miraculous items created during the very last moments of creation.  Among them are the mouth of Bilaam’s donkey, Aaron’s staff (that transforms). The inscription of the 10 Commandments and the tablets, and the first pair of tongs (since you need tongs to make tongs).  As a result of this mishnah, Rambam asserts that all miracles must be part of the natural world. Exceptions to this must have been built into creation, and therefore into nature.

Throughout history there have been many explanations as to the natural series of events that may have created the plagues. One particular piece is more difficult to explain.  The frogs are to be a widespread plague, but when Aaron holds out his hand, only one frog appears. Rationalist, such as Ibn Ezra, state this is merely referring to the genus, but that there were actually thousands of frogs at that moment. Rabbi Akiva taught there was one frog. The Egyptians beat the frog, and others flew from it. Midrash teaches the thousands emerged from the mouth of the one.

While the modern mainstream follows the rational thought of Ibn Ezra on this occurrence, there are fascinating natural phenomena that may inform us. The Northern Gastric Brooding Frog, native to Australia, swallows her eggs, allowing them to develop in her stomach. Fully developed frogs emerge from the mother’s mouth. In Darwin’s Frog of South America, the male swallows the eggs, storing them in specialized sacks until they are fully developed. Three species seem to shed babies from their backs. The male Marsupial Frog holds tadpoles in pouches on his hips until they are developed. The male Midwife Toad, of Europe and northern Africa, carries its eggs until they are ready to hatch. He then deposits the tadpoles into water. Finally, the Surinam Toad flips during mating so the eggs are caught between the male and female, and become embedded in the female’s spongy skin. More skin grows over the eggs, allowing them to gestate in protected pockets. When developed, the frogs emerge from their mother’s back, although flexing can also forcibly eject them.

We cannot know if the Rabbis knew of any species that displayed such interesting reproductive oddities. Likely, the rationalists were correct, and this is just a case of life imitating Torah.

Shabbat shalom.