When confronted to provide evidence on certain claimed formations, Doug and Dave changed their story, even reversing previous claims; or they simply could not explain unusual features found in the genuine phenomenon. When they claimed making all the formations around the English county of Hampshire, for example, it was pointed out that half the known formations had actually occured in another county- "Er, no, we didn't do those either," they replied. In the end, not even Doug and Dave knew which ones they had made. .
The real issue is that no man-made crop circle has satisfactorily replicated the features associated with the real phenomenon, and this has baffled scientists and researchers. Crop circles are created by a force seemingly at odds with modern science. Central to the hoax argument is that a physical object is required to flatten the crop to the ground, resulting in the breaking of the plant stems. In genuine formations the stems are not broken but bent, normally about an inch off the ground and near the plant's first node. The plants appear to be subjected to a short and intense burst of heat which softens the stems to drop just above the ground, where they reharden into their new and very permanent position without damage. Plant biologists are baffled by this phenomenon, and farmers, who know how the land ticks, have no explanation either. Research and laboratory tests suggest that microwaves or infrasound may be the only method capable of producing such an effect. .
So what is this 'unknown force' that creates genuine crop circles? One answer may lie with sound. There are a number of accounts of a trilling sound heard by people prior to witnessing crop circles forming. The reports describe a sudden stillness in the air, the morning birdsong superseded by a trilling sound and the banging together of wheat heads despite an absence of wind. A whole section of crop then lays down in spiral fashion, the whole episode lasting less than fifteen seconds.