Evidence for God In the Things He Has Made
The green darner dragonfly (Anax junius) is common across North America and is the state insect of Washington. It is one of 5,000 dragonfly species but has some unique properties that make it a “mosquito hawk.” The green darner dragonfly gets its name from its long, thin, needle-like body that resembles a darning needle. These …
Continue reading “The Green Darner Dragonfly Is a Mosquito Hawk”
We tend to view parasites as destructive, even repulsive, unwanted nuisances. However, scientists are finding that parasites often perform beneficial roles in the ecosystem. Some scientists think we should be protecting parasites from extinction. Scientists are concerned that we have not studied the roles of parasites in maintaining a balanced ecosystem. For example, a parasite …
Every animal has a way of communicating with others of its species to find food, for defense, or for mating. Each animal’s design includes a unique method of communication, and some of the methods are astounding. One of those is the elephant communication system. Recent studies show that African elephants engage in a type of …
Smoke from wildfires has been a fact of life for virtually everyone. Even here in Michigan, we have seen smoke from the fires on the West Coast. At times, it has been dense enough that some folks with respiratory illnesses have had to stay inside and use air purifiers to breathe. Researchers at Colorado State …
Several “plant neuroscientists” have written papers claiming that plants have intelligence and cognition and experience pain and other feelings. This is not the work of crackpots but of reputable scientists writing in professional journals. It started in 2006 with an article in the scientific journal Trends in Plant Science by E.D. Brenner titled “Plant Neurobiology: …
Continue reading ““Plant Neuroscientists” and Plant Consciousness”
One of the most ingenious methods of spreading seeds in the natural world is the design and function of the tumbleweed. These plants exist in dry places where there is a lot of wind. The tumbleweed life is challenging. The tumbleweed design deals with two big problems. The first is that the plant must be …
An interesting creature lives in the ocean off southern Florida and the Bahamas. The smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata) is a member of the ray family with a snout lined with needle-sharp teeth that it can use to cut vegetation or chop up a predator that gets too close. The amazing thing about this fish is …
Fossil evidence of ancient trees known as baobabs found in Madagascar shows that they are among Earth’s oldest life forms. This genus, known as Adansonia, has eight species in Madagascar, Africa, and northwest Australia. People call them the “upside down trees” because of their shape. The nickname “tree of life” comes from the fact that …
There are 56 species of flying lightning bugs, or fireflies, and each emits light of a different frequency. The different firefly frequencies cause different colors, such as green, yellow, or red, but science has found that the frequencies are far more precise than the color. The fact that each species has a particular wavelength allows …
One of the most interesting areas of study in living things is animal memory capacity. Memory is designed into animals to benefit both them and other forms of life in their ecosystem. We see a good example of partial memory in squirrels who bury massive numbers of seeds, such as acorns, but only remember where …