Also See The Trilobite’s Eye: An Embarrassment to Evolution and The Cleaner Fish (Both Below) A fundamental concept of the theory of evolution is that of gradual change from a "primitive," less complex organism into a highly structured organism over an imagined period of millions of years. How valid is this idea? Can we really verify the evidence supporting this idea? There are many animals existing today that totally defy evolution by their very existence. This chapter will give examples of some of these animals and explain the problems they pose the theory of evolution. The logical frame of reference used in concluding that these animals could not have been the product of evolution is called an indirect proof. The way this works is to assume the opposite of what you wish to prove, proceed logically until you reach a contradiction or an impasse, then conclude that the alternative is true. In this chapter, we will use the concept of indirect proof with evolution, proceed logically until we reach an dead end, leaving creation as the only other alternative. The realization that each animal is an interdependent, interrelated system was the greatest factor that influenced me to believe that evolution could not have occurred. To survive in a particular environment, an animal has to have features that work in that environment. For example, air breathing animals needs lungs. Flying creatures need wings. If evolution is valid, transitions from one environment to another had to have occurred. If such transitions are impossible, evolution is impossible! Gradual evolutionary change from one species to another requires many mutations and genetic changes. But, the fossil record exhibits anything but gradual change. There is a gap between living systems and non-life, invertebrates and vertebrates, fish and amphibians, amphibians and reptiles, reptiles and birds, reptiles and mammals, and mammals and man. Dolphins and Whales We can demonstrate one such transition problem by using the example of dolphins and whales. These mammals bear their young alive and breathe air, yet spend their entire lifetime in the sea. Presumably, in order for dolphins and whales to have evolved, they must have originated from a land mammal that returned to the water and changed into a sea creature. But dolphins and whales have so many remarkable features upon which their survival depends that they couldn't have evolved! It would be a lot like trying to change a bus into a submarine one part at a time, all the while it is traveling at 60 miles per hour. The following is a list of transitions evolutionists have to account for in the dolphin in its evolution from some unknown land dwelling pre-dolphin: × The nose would have to move to the back of the head. × Feet, claws, or tail would be exchanged for fins and flippers. × It would have to develop a torpedo shaped body for efficient swimming in the water. × It would have to be able to drink sea water and desalinize it. × It's entire bone structure and metabolism would have to be rearranged. × It would need to develop a sophisticated sonar system to search for food.
Could the dolphin acquire these features gradually one at a time over a period of millions of years? What about the transitional stages? Would they have survived with just some of these features? Why is there a total absence of transitional forms fossilized? Consider the whale and its enormous size in comparison with the plankton it feeds upon. The whale is a nautical vacuum cleaner, with a baleen filter. While it was "developing" this feature, what did it feed upon before? For me, it takes a great stretch of the imagination to picture the evolution of dolphins and whales. The Duckbill Platypus | The explorer who first saw a hide of the duckbill platypus thought that it was composed of the hides of several different animals sewn together as a joke. Later, when a preserved specimen was brought to him for dissection, he finally declared it outrageous, but genuine! The more you study the duckbill platypus, the more problems you find for evolutionists. Here is a list of some of its features: 1 × It is a furbearing mammal. × It lays eggs, yet suckles its young. × It has a ducklike bill, which has built within it a heat sensitive worm finding radar. × Its tail is flat like a beaver's, yet furry. × It has webbed feet in front, clawed feet in the rear. × The reproductive systems are uniquely different from the rest of the animal world, but mostly mammalian in nature. × The only other known monotreme, or egg-laying mammal is echidna or spiny anteater. Except for the fact that it lays eggs, it is about as different as you can get from the platypus.
Can you imagine what a pre-platypus might have looked like? Nothing in the fossil record gives us a clue about the origin of this animal, which is an outrage to evolutionists. This animal does very well in its natural environment in spite of its unusual features. To look at it, it would appear that this animal was pieced together from a variety of completely different animals. The Koala Koalas are marsupials that spend nearly their entire lives high in eucalyptus trees. Their diet consists of eucalyptus leaves toxic to humans. They survive without drinking water or shelter, survive high temperatures by panting, and a well insulated coat protects them from the cold. [2] One of the greatest "advances" of man according to the theory of evolution is the grasping hand with the opposable thumb. But, many apes also have a foot with an opposable great toe. Not to be outdone, the koala not only has an opposable great toe, but two opposable digits on each hand. Now, also, the first digit of the foot lacks claws, but the second has two claws! Consider the evolutionist's argument for a claw to migrate from one toe to another over eons of time! One might imagine a double mutation, one that would delete a gene from one place and paste it elsewhere, or you could just believe that the koala was created that way. This would be like a baby born without a fingernail on the index finger, but two fingernails on the middle finger. What about the unique pouch that opens aft? This feature is similar to that of the wombat, which is a completely different animal than the koala. What could the ancestry of the koala have been to account for these features, especially since transitional forms are missing in the fossils? Most marsupials are confined to the isolated continent of Australia. Why then is the opossum so widespread in America? It is highly unlikely that one species of marsupial would be so highly removed from its ancestors. This Theory Is For The Birds! Proponents of the theory of evolution would have us believe that reptiles began to grow appendages on their back as extensions of scales, and these appendages supposedly developed over periods of millions of years into wings and feathers. Then, they believe that these reptiles began to climb trees and attempted to jump out and fly. Imagine all the ancestral birds attempting to do this until one day one of them had wings structured properly and took off and flew. There is nothing that is gradual about a transition from a land environment to an air environment, or a land to sea, or sea to land. Such a transition does not take millions of years, either you can fly or you can't; either you breathe air or have gills. One of the most complex structures in the animal kingdom is the feather. The feather is lightweight, yet very strong and sturdy. It is made up of a network of fibrils that interconnect with one another in such a way providing the best economy of surface area for the weight. There is a main stem serving as the main support for the feather. It branches out into tributary stems, each of which branches again until they interconnect by using hooks and barbicels. How would a reptile react to feathers on his back? He'd probably pull them out! Such structures in a transitional form would be detrimental to a reptile. Some birds have unique structures that enable them to perform specialized functions in nature. [3,4] The woodpecker is such an example. He has special shock absorbers in his beak and skull providing protection from the severe migraine headaches that might otherwise result from his hazardous occupation. Imagine all the poor pre-woodpeckers knocking themselves out, getting their beaks stuck in trees until this feature "evolved." Most birds have three toes in front and one behind. The woodpecker has two in front and two behind to enable him to grasp onto the side of a tree and peck away. He also has stiff tail feathers to support him and a long sticky tongue designed for fishing the insects he feeds on out of the holes he pecks in the trees. We have to conclude, God designed him for his special occupation. Consider the water ouzel, a bird that not only flies in the air, but swims underwater with his wings!5 He also strolls on the bottom of the stream, overturning rocks with his beak and toes to feed on various water creatures. Air sacs provide buoyancy, enabling him to rise to the surface. He "blows his tanks" to submerge. Since he does not have webbed feet, he uses his wings as underwater oars. He normally makes his nest behind a waterfall, through which he must pass to reach his front door. He makes his nest out of living moss, which is kept alive from the spray of the cascade. How many eons of diving school did this bird endure before he mastered the delicate balance of the air and water environments? These unique air sacs will either work, or they won't. These functions would have to be perfected before our skinnydipping friend would ever discover the juicy morsels on the bottom of the stream. Bird migration poses a problem for evolutionists. How does one account for birds like the Arctic tern that migrates from pole to pole, and returns to the same nesting spot each year? How does one account for this apparent design if we rule out creation by God? The Phalarope is a bird who doesn't follow the normal pattern where the male gathers the food and the female sits on the eggs. Instead, it is the male who has to assume all the housewifely chores of nest building, incubation, and family feeding. Only one of two options is available: either juggling of the genders existed from the beginning or "Mother Nature" had to experiment with some bizarre transitional match making. [6] Consider, though, the broader picture. What was the origin of sex and the roles each sex plays? Courtship behavior, sex roles and reproductive activity vary almost from species to species. This is an indicator of special creation. When did the two sexes diverge? According to evolution, a long slow process over millions of years created the sexes. But, reproduction is either asexual or sexual, there is no in-between. Even if some mutation created a male sexual creature, it would not reproduce unless the same mutation occurred in matching female as well! The smallest bird in nature, and one of the most amazing is the hummingbird. [7] Weighing only 1/14 of an ounce, he has much in common with a helicopter, flying backward and sideways and hover in midair. Its rate of metabolism is so high that it must feed almost constantly. But, since there are no rods in the hummingbird's retina for night vision, its vital processes shut down to a state of hibernation at night. The nest of the hummingbird is not much bigger than a postage stamp, made out of thistledown and cobwebs. But, built into this pintsized bird is one of the most complex flight mechanisms known. Consider the following: Hmmmmmmmmm!! × In the feathers, the quill is considered stronger for its weight than any structure designed by man. × Flexibility of the quill allows the primary feathers at the wing tip to bend upward with each downbeat of the wing. This produces the equivalent of pitch in a helicopter. × The quill constantly changes shape to meet the requirements of air pressure and wing position. × The leading vane of the feather is narrower than the trailing vane. This feature causes the wing to operate like a propeller to give both lift and propulsion. × The wing is an efficient doublejointed foresail, the inner half sloping at a slight angle to give lift like the wing of an airplane, while the outer half acts like a propeller. × There is a jet assisted takeoff mechanism. A tuft of feathers at the junction of the wing adds extra airfoil surface during landing and takeoff. × Enlarged muscles to operate the wings; almost 3/4 the weight of the bird. × Higher metabolism, temperature, blood pressure, and a hyperactive heart contribute to the bird's success. × A remarkable system of respiration where the hollow bones provide an air sac system, providing buoyancy, a reservoir for respiration and an air conditioner. × Air flows into the lungs in only one direction, providing a continuous supply of oxygen. × Other features: streamlining, retractable landing gear, camouflage, migration navigation, and hibernation.
It is unreasonable to suggest that the hummingbird "developed" all of these features as a product of evolution gradually over millions of years. Time and chance cannot produce such design and order. Only God can! Also See Where Did Birds Come From? Another Fishy Story! The Anableps is a fish that spends his life on the surface of the water. Although he is a rather small fish, he poses a big problem for evolutionists. You see, his eyes are divided in half, the top designed for seeing in air out of the water, and the bottom for seeing below the surface of the water. [8] What were the transitional forms like? What kind of evolutionary "pressure" could have caused half an eye to gradually evolve to see out of the water? The Archer Fish The Archer fish overcomes a problem in sea to air ballistics. He squirts water at his prey, which are bugs and flies. His mouth has a built in groove that channels the water like a squirt gun. But the biggest problem is his aim. He has to overcome the refractive difference from water to air in order to accurately hit his prey. [9] If you ever looked at a spoon in a glass of water, you would understand the problem. The refractive quality of water makes it appear to be broken in half. Again we marvel at God's design.
A Fish Goes Fishing! Consider the angler fish, who has an appendage dangling in front of his mouth that attracts other fish, and when the prey gets close enough, chomp! The angler fish lives at great depths and has to handle a lot of water pressure. But the biggest problem for evolutionists is the fact that the male of the species doesn't eat! By an amazing process, he attaches himself to the female, and the blood streams of the two merge! Imagine the changes the male would have had to go through in order to evolve this gradually over a period of millions of years! Like the angler fish, the decoy fish also lures its prey by means of a bait. One of its fins resembles a small fish standing out in contrast to the rest of the body, which blends in well with the environment. The prey, as it approaches the decoy fish, sees only the fishy looking fin and does not realize that it is part of a much bigger fish. Flytrap Claptrap Imagine the fun that the Creator had in making the Venus Flytrap, the carnivorous plant. What a problem for an evolutionist this creates! On the surface of the trap are trigger hairs causing an action potential similar to a nerve response, closing the trap. [10] The plant then secretes digestive juices and the dying insect gives off weak solutions of sodium and ammonium ions, causing the trap to close more firmly.
In order for a Venus Flytrap to be functional, the plant must have in place a full-formed trap mechanism complete with trigger hairs, digestive glands, living bars, and action potential response before any insects could be trapped. Also, the trap would have to have the capability of responding to the sodium ions secreted by the dying ants and flies so that the proper narrowing and digestion could occur. Recent research regarding the flytraps has found that ants are a more common prey than flies. Scientists formerly believed that a scent was secreted by the trap, attracting the insects. This idea was ruled out after intensive observation, finding that the most frequently trapped insects were either poor fliers, clumsy fliers or non-flying forms that walk into the trap accidentally. Another result of this study is the conclusion that the flytraps do quite well, grow, produce flowers, set seed, and fully propagate without ever eating a single insect. Why would such a structure "evolve"? Since there is no significant advantage to the trap forming by itself, I would rather believe that God created it as a curiosity. Evolution Croaks! Fossils of supposedly ancient frogs show that frogs have always resembled frogs. This is one of the problems evolutionists face, that many modern animals are very much like their fossil counterparts, with no evolutionary change apparent over the imagined millions of years. Gerald H. Duffett [11] outlines a method of linking together vital functions of the frog as proof of creation. He provides detailed diagrams linking together these functions, showing that no single entity is fully functional alone and that other entities are required to make each entity fully functional. The following is a summary of his "linkological" evaluation of the frog.
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