Animals Archives

July 20, 2023July 19, 2023

Non-Native Species Invasion

As we look at the flora and fauna of our world, we see a beautifully designed system. Plants and animals sustain each other in a balanced network of life, but problems arise when humans do things that upset that balance. One way we do that is by accidentally or intentionally causing a non-native species invasion with no natural predator or forager. The species then has no control factor to balance it, and plant growth or animal reproduction becomes out of control.

An example of a non-native species invasion is the kudzu plant. This vine can grow up to a foot per day and is known as “the vine that ate the south.” It has taken over parks, roadsides, and forests in some areas. Kudzu vines wrap themselves around the trunks of native trees, out-competing their host for sunlight and even nutrients by girdling its bark and strangling the tree.

Kudzu is native to Asia and some Pacific islands, but people brought it to North America as a decorative plant in the 1870s. As late as the 1940s, the U.S. government urged farmers to plant it to prevent soil erosion, and people promoted it as a fast-growing plant to shade porches. The consequences of human actions have become evident, costing millions of dollars.

One of the worst U.S. invaders is the inappropriately named tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima ), native to areas of China and Taiwan. It was brought to the United States in 1784 as a decorative tree. However, its habits of sending out shoots, known as suckers, colonizing areas, and suppressing competition by producing chemicals that inhibit the growth and reproduction of other plants. This non-native species invasion also creates an objectionable odor and hosts another invasive species, the spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula). Eradicating this “tree of hell,” as some call it, is difficult because if you cut it down, it will quickly regrow from new shoots.

All of these invasive species serve a purpose in their native lands, where they fit into the balance of the natural world. The problem comes when humans upset God’s balanced system. In many ways, humans have not been good stewards of the job God assigned us to “rule over” the Earth (Genesis 1:26) and “work it and take care of it” (Genesis 2:15).

References: Wikipedia- Kudzu in the U.S., Tree of Heaven, Spotted Lanternfly

July 19, 2023July 19, 2023

Extraordinary Claims Require Extraordinary Evidence

It’s known as the Sagan standard and abbreviated ECREE. Carl Sagan, an American scientist, and agnostic, hosted the PBS program Cosmos in the 1980s. He said in the series, “I believe that the extraordinary should be pursued. But extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” He was talking about claims that aliens from space had visited Earth. But we can apply the principle to more than alien visitations.

The truth is that Sagan did not originate the ECREE concept. He just popularized it on television. The idea had been previously expressed many times by others. Even Thomas Jefferson described it in a letter he wrote in 1808 about the existence of meteorites, but he was much more wordy. (He used about three dozen words instead of Sagan’s five.)

What does the Sagan ECREE standard mean? It tells us that when we make an extraordinary claim, we must back it up with extraordinary evidence. How about the extraordinary secularist claim that everything we see came from nothing by means of nothing? If matter, energy, time, and space all originated at the “big bang,” and nothing existed before that, where is the extraordinary evidence to back up that claim? Could an eternal God existing outside of time and space be a better explanation for the universe?

If one claims that life originated from non-living chemicals without intelligent guidance, what is the extraordinary evidence for that? Even if science succeeds in creating life from non-living chemicals in the laboratory (and they are far from doing that), it would merely prove that intelligence can create life from non-life. That is what the Bible has said for thousands of years.

Once life got its start, what is the evidence that it evolved from species to species until it reached homo sapiens? We don’t see any extraordinary experimental or fossil record evidence of that either. To prove that natural selection acting on random mutations could accomplish a task that defies the second law of thermodynamics requires extraordinary evidence, which we don’t have.

We agree with the Sagan standard that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence” (ECREE). The question is, does all that we see in the universe and on our planet give extraordinary evidence of unguided random chance or design by an intelligent Creator?

Reference: Wikipedia

July 3, 2023July 1, 2023

Human Actions Lead to Wildfires

In our part of the country, people will remember the summer of 2023 as the “summer of smoke.” Canadian wildfires combined with wind directions have brought heavy smoke into our area. The smoke has been so dense that a friend living in Chicago told me he could not see across the street – a distance of about 20 yards. In the past, we personally experienced California wildfires and saw their massive damage. The message we need to understand is that human actions lead to wildfires.

God designed the natural world to prevent massive fires from developing. When we allow brush to accumulate, lightning, human carelessness, or arson starts a fire, it will explode into a conflagration of massive proportions. The role of grazing animals is one way the natural world has been designed to prevent these huge fires.

Ireland is a rainy country, but in 2021, wildfires burned near Dublin for six weeks. The fuel for those explosive fires is a flowering plant called gorse. It grows in dense thickets and is highly flammable when it dries in late summer. The removal of an indigenous goat breed known as old Irish goats allowed the heathland to become overgrown. The result was annual fire outbreaks.

By introducing the old Irish goats back to the area where the gorse grows, the plant biomass is no longer a fuel source for the fires. An organization called the “Old Irish Goat Society” (OIGS) has been involved in a three-year project to reintroduce the endangered goat breed into areas suffering the threat of wildfires. One obvious risk in today’s world is that the goats will also eat desirable plants. In the past, carnivores prevented that from happening by limiting goat populations. The OIGS prevents that problem by equipping the goats with GPS colors that set off an alarm when the goats wander too far.

God built into the creation a variety of means of preventing wildfires. Once again, human actions lead to wildfires by altering the original system, which included grazing animals. Yellowstone National Park has similar results with elk herds. We must learn to allow the controlling agents that God built into the original system.

Reference: “Meet the Firefighting Goats of Dublin” in Discover magazine for July/August 2023, pages 10-11.

June 28, 2023June 27, 2023

The Titan Vessel and Piezophysiology

The recent tragedy with the Titan vessel imploding brings to mind the science of piezophysiology, the study of living organisms under high pressure. The connection between the Titan vessel and piezophysiology is that deep sea fish must survive under massive hydrostatic pressures such as the Titan was subjected to. How do they survive?

Building deep-sea vehicles has been an enormous challenge for engineers. The standard has been to build vessels of titanium in a spherical shape to equalize the water pressure all around. The Titan hull was made of carbon fiber five inches thick, and it was 22 feet long. The elongated shape increased the pressure load on the midsection. The vessel had been subjected to stress during about two-dozen previous dives. Each of those dives might have created small unnoticed cracks in the carbon fibers, like splitting wood along the grain. Those tiny cracks could lead to rapid and catastrophic failure.

Let’s do a little math to get some idea of the amount of water pressure. Water has a density of 62.4 pounds per cubic foot. One mile of water would be 5,280 feet. Each foot of water would put 62.4 pounds on any object one mile down. That would be 329,472 pounds on each square foot of a submarine or a fish. That is 164.7 tons in fresh water and even more in salt water, and the Titanic is about 2.4 miles down.

Water doesn’t freeze at that depth because pressure lowers the freezing point. Those who study piezophysiology tell us that fish living at those depths have flexible bones and cartilage, do not have swim bladders, have special blood adapted to deep-sea conditions, and have bioluminescence to compensate for the darkness of deep ocean environments.

We learn from the Titan vessel and piezophysiology that surviving deep under the ocean requires wise engineering. Humans have much to learn about the creatures of the deep, but the difficulty of visiting deep sea environments limits our knowledge. However, every discovery of piezophysiology and related fields speaks to God’s wisdom and design of life that allows those creatures to exist in a world that is forbidding for humans.

References: Oxford Academic, quora.com, and “How the unconventional design of the Titan sub may have destined it for disaster” in apnews.com

June 26, 2023June 25, 2023

The Design of Beetles

In every environment on Earth, frogs, fish, and various insects depend on beetles for food. We see beetles in deserts worldwide, and many desert animals rely on them as a food source. A mystery that has vexed scientists is the design of beetles that allows them to survive in arid climates.

Recent research shows that beetles have a unique system to recycle water. They have an organ near the end of their digestive system called the “rectal complex,” lined with blister-like cells that draw moisture out of fecal material. Instead of being excreted, the water passes through the wall of the rectal complex and back into the beetle’s body by osmosis. This process allows beetles to be very abundant in desert ecosystems, providing food for various desert creatures.

Insects annually damage up to 20% of the world’s food supply. Because of the design of the rectal complex, red flour beetles (Tribolium castaneum) can survive in dry food storage such as wheat and flour. While this design benefits desert creatures, it is a real problem for humans. Researchers studying these beetles have found a gene that appears to be the key to their ability to recycle water.

The design of beetles serves them well in their natural habitat, but it creates problems when they get into stored human food. God has given living creatures the ability to survive and humans the intelligence to understand the design to benefit our survival.

Reference: Science News May 6 & 20, 2023, page 5

June 21, 2023June 20, 2023

Chemical Defense Against Predators

God’s design in the natural world provides protection for animals that would appear to be unable to defend themselves. Some animals can’t bite or run, and camouflage is not an option because their environment changes too quickly. Toads and frogs are classic examples of this, but they have an effective chemical defense against predators.

The Sonoran Desert toad (Incilius alvarius) in the desert southwest (also known as the Colorado River toad) defends itself with a chemical mix secreted through its skin. This toad is very large, and its desert environment makes hiding difficult. All toads secrete toxins through their skin, but the Sonoran Desert toad secretes a substance known as 5-MeO-DMT from glands behind each eye and on its legs. This chemical is a powerful hallucinogen secreted by no other toad or frog, and predators quickly learn to avoid it.

The giant leaf frog (Phyllomedusa bicolor) in South America (also known as the giant monkey frog) secretes a chemical known as kambo, which causes violent regurgitation and seizures and even affects the heart function of predators. The chemicals differ with each species, and researchers are trying to determine how the defenses work. Sonoran Desert toads and giant leaf frogs are geographically isolated, yet they share a common problem of vulnerability. They both use a chemical defense against predators but with different chemicals.

Interest in the Sonoran Desert Toad has increased because people have found that licking the toad produces a high. The psychedelic effect has caused people to catch the frogs, threatening their survival. Although predators are smart enough to leave them alone, apparently, humans are not. Abusers call the 5-MeO-DMT toxin “the God molecule,” but researchers warn that it can cause cardiac arrest.

Researchers are studying the ability of toads and frogs to secrete a chemical defense against predators. The difference in the chemicals depending on the species is still a mystery, but it’s a testimony to the design built into the natural world, allowing diversity in living things. The statement of God’s design of humans in Psalms 139:14 is also true of every creature in God’s creation.

Reference: Science News (May 6 and 20, 2023, pages 21-22)

June 15, 2023June 14, 2023

Beauty in the Natural World

Everywhere we look, we see beauty in the natural world. One example of that is Wilson’s bird-of-paradise (Cicinnurus respublica). This unique and exotic bird displays extravagant plumes and feathers that capture attention.

Males are more brightly colored than females. They have a black head with a turquoise crown and yellow feathers on the nape of the neck. Their iridescent tail feathers form the shape of a handlebar mustache. These birds flash and shimmer their colors in the gloom of the forest floor only on two islands in Indonesia.

The most fascinating behavior of Wilson’s bird-of-paradise is the vivid and complex dance males perform to entice females. Because his movements are so robust that he needs an open space free of clutter, he first crafts his “dance floor.” To prepare the dancing area, the bird clears the ground of leaves and other obstacles that could disrupt his performance. Scientists have tested this behavior by placing leaves in front of the bird. That obstruction provoked the bird, causing him to immediately clear the leaves from the area.

A female will find a perching spot on a branch to watch the show from above. As the male dances, she examines every detail of his routine to decide whether to choose him as a mate. Wilson’s bird of paradise females are very critical performance judges.

The dancing ability and intelligence of these birds are astonishing. Wilson’s bird-of-paradise is only one of God’s many beautiful and fascinating species. You can read about more of them at THIS LINK. Beauty in the natural world is difficult to explain by naturalistic evolution since, in many cases, the beauty has no survival value. However, a creative Designer who loves beauty would certainly create a beautiful world and give humans, created in His image, the ability to enjoy and be inspired by beauty in the natural world.

June 8, 2023June 1, 2023

The Nutritional Value of Oysters

We live in an age when worldwide food supplies are limited, and there is incredible food waste in America. However, one food source God has given us is present in all of the world’s oceans. It is the five species of oysters harvested in the United States and many places worldwide. The nutritional value of oysters and their availability makes them an important food source.

Oysters are a keystone species that filter and clean sea water by consuming microorganisms. The average female oyster will produce up to 100,000,000 eggs a year. However, humans’ indiscriminate harvesting of wild oysters has reduced oyster populations in the U.S.A. to only 1% of what they were in the 1800s. In addition to the wild oyster population, these mollusks can be grown in artificial environments anywhere. Artificial tanks can use the runoff from forests, wetlands, and marshes to feed the oysters.

The nutritional value of oysters is well known. According to WebMD, six medium-sized oysters would produce 50 calories, 1 gram of fat, 21 mg of cholesterol, 150 mg of sodium, 5 grams of carbohydrates, and 4 grams of protein. For an American on a 2000-calorie diet, this serving would provide 28% of the daily iron needs, 4% of the vitamin C, and 3% of the calcium. Oysters are also an excellent source of vitamin B12, essential for brain health. They are also rich in vitamin D, copper, zinc, and manganese, all micronutrients that may help to prevent bone loss and osteoporosis.

Our food shortages are not because God hasn’t provided what we need. Current problems of land use, waste disposal, and nutritional deficiencies would be over if humans decided they have had enough war, greed, selfishness, pride, and arrogance. If we would start wisely using what God has given us and applying what we know, we could end hunger and malnutrition on the planet.

References: USA Today for April 23, 2023, page 5PE and WebMD.com.

June 7, 2023June 1, 2023

Tardigrades Have Incredible Resilience

NASA’s “Astronomy Picture of the Day” for May 21, 2023, shows a small creature called a tardigrade crawling on some moss. The picture is an electron micrograph of the tardigrade, which is a millimeter long (0.0393701 inches). Most tardigrades range between 0.3 and 0.5 mm. They eat plants and bacteria and help convert them to other forms essential to molding and shaping the environment. In addition, tardigrades have incredible resilience to adverse conditions.

Tardigrades can go for decades without food or water. They can withstand temperatures near absolute zero but can also survive in boiling water. They can survive in pressures well above what has been measured on the ocean floor or even in a near-perfect vacuum. Tardigrades have incredible resilience, allowing them to survive direct exposure to high radiation levels. They can repair their own DNA or reduce their body water content to a few percent.

They were first described in 1773 by a German zoologist who called them “little water bears.” Then, in 1777, an Italian biologist gave them the “tardigrade” name, which means “slow walker.” These creatures remind us that living things too small to see with normal human vision are major movers and shapers of higher life forms.
The formation of unseen life systems that allow us to exist demonstrates life’s complexity. It demands an acceptance of the fact that we are not just a chance collision of atoms. The more we see of life and design in the creation, the more we comprehend the magnitude of the Creator’s power and wisdom.

Reference: NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day

June 6, 2023June 1, 2023

Convergent Evolution and Carcinization

When unrelated species of animals or plants have common features, evolutionary biologists call it “convergent evolution.” There are many examples, such as:
* Dolphins and bats use echolocation to find food.
* Titan arum and rafflesia plants use putrid odor to attract pollinators.
* Nightingales and humpback whales sing similar songs just for beauty.

Those are only a few of the vast number of examples that scientists explain as convergent evolution. You can probably think of others. For example, bats, birds, and insects all have wings, but they are not related. In addition, unrelated venomous or poisonous creatures often wear bright colors as a warning, for example, snakes, frogs, and insects. Usually, the convergent features of various animals and plants serve an obvious purpose for the species’ survival.

Perhaps the most repeated convergence appears in the crab-like body shape. A crab has a flat, rounded shell and a tail that tucks under its body. Evolutionary biologists say that body plan has “evolved” at least five times. Scientists even have a name for this phenomenon. They call it “carcinization,” but they can only guess why it happened.

The result of carcinization is that many unrelated crustaceans resemble crabs. As a result, we often call them crabs even though they are not true crabs. A familiar example is the so-called king crab. Crab-shaped animals come in a wide range of sizes and live in various habitats, from the oceans to the mountains. So, with these creatures living in diverse ecosystems, scientists have difficulty explaining why they evolved the same body plan. Some suggestions include the tucked-under tail providing greater safety from predators or the body shape allowing them to move sideways.

We have a suggestion of why the crab shape, or carcinization, shows up in so many different crustaceans. Rather than convergent evolution, the common traits can be explained by a common Creator. That would explain why these creatures have the DNA building blocks for crabbiness – oops, I mean crab body shape.