New Ediacara Fossils Exacerbate Cambrian Explosion

Creation-Evolution Headlines ^ | 12/23/2002 | Creation-Evolution Headlines

[CalConservative]

New Ediacara Fossils Exacerbate Cambrian Explosion   12/23/2002
More fossils of the Ediacara biota, assumed to be the earliest animal fossils, have been found in Newfoundland 2 km lower than earlier discoveries.  (Fossils in the Burgess Shale similar in time and complexity to the Ediacaran fauna were featured in Stephen Jay Gould’s book Wonderful Life.)  Narbonne and Gehling of Queen’s University, Ontario, were surprised by the “unexpectedly large size and complexity“ of the fossils (some up to nearly 2 meters long), which imply “animals appeared very soon after the meltdown of the ‘snowball’ glaciers.”  (Here they are referring to the “snowball earth” hypothesis of a worldwide glaciation, “the most severe ice age Earth has ever known” assumed to have occurred before life arose.)  The fossil find is published in the January issue of Geology and is summarized on EurekAlert.
    In another paper in the same issue of Geology, British geologist Derek Martin shows that soft tissue can fossilize easily under the right conditions.  His team got eggs to mineralize in three weeks under conditions of anoxia and lowered pH.  The summary on EurekAlert mentions that recently, “fossilized eggs and embryos have been discovered in Precambrian deposits, which may help to shed light on early animal evolution.”  Martin’s experiments “reinforce the opinion that the fossils are eggs and embryos of animals, rather than algal cells, which the fossil material was originally described as.”

No kidding this sheds light on early animal evolution.  It sheds the light of truth that there was no early animal evolution; animals were already there, fully formed, up to two meters long, and able to lay eggs.  Do you realize how complex an animal has to be to lay eggs?  For a long time, paleontologists thought that the round objects in Precambrian strata were “simple” algal cells (as if cells able to perform photosynthesis are simple), but if Martin is correct, they are complex animal embryos.  He also shows that the old excuse that Precambrian fossils are missing because soft parts do not fossilize well is false.  They can fossilize – quickly and easily.  Deep within the earliest Cambrian layers are complex animals up to two meters long, even lower in the strata than the Ediacara fossils similar to those in the Burgess Shale that dazzled Gould.  This cannot but be disheartening news for those looking for evidence of evolution in the earliest rocks.  The Cambrian explosion reveals a sudden profusion of complex life forms from the very beginning.  The sound of the explosion can no longer be muffled by evolutionary insulation.

[CalConservative]

We keep pushing back the timeframes for complex life to have appeared on this planet. So where the heck is that simple life form that preceded all this complexity of life? It sure doesn't seem to be in the Vendian/Ediacaran time frame.

[EggsAckley]

A fish-like thing appeared among the annelids one day.
It hadn't any parapods nor setae to display.
It hadn't any eyes nor jaws, nor ventral nervous cord,
But it had a lot of gill slits and it had a notochord.

Chorus:
It's a long way from Amphioxus. It's a long way to us.
It's a long way from Amphioxus to the meanest human cuss.
Well, it's goodbye to fins and gill slits, and it's welcome lungs and hair!
It's a long, long way from Amphioxus, but we all came from there.

It wasn't much to look at and it scarce knew how to swim,
And Nereis was very sure it hadn't come from him.
The mollusks wouldn't own it and the arthropods got sore,
So the poor thing had to burrow in the sand along the shore.

He burrowed in the sand before a crab could nip his tail,
And he said "Gill slits and myotomes are all to no avail.
I've grown some metapleural folds and sport an oral hood,
But all these fine new characters don't do me any good.

(chorus)

It sulked awhile down in the sand without a bit of pep,
Then he stiffened up his notochord and said, "I'll beat 'em yet!
Let 'em laugh and show their ignorance. I don't mind their jeers. *
Just wait until they see me in a hundred million years. *

My notochord shall turn into a chain of vertebrae
And as fins my metapleural folds will agitate the sea.
My tiny dorsal nervous cord will be a mighty brain
And the vertebrates shall dominate the animal domain.

(chorus)

[aimhigh]

were surprised by the “unexpectedly large size and complexity“

So, evolutionary theory # 4335 now gets replaced by theory # 4336.....

[keats5]

I'd wait a bit before changing all the textbooks. The so called set-in-stone facts are changing rapidly.

[f.Christian]

No pre cambrian fossils .. .. ..

massive flooding // 'volcanic' sediment layering from above .. .. ..

and sub terranean layering from below -- -- --

young earth = = = all the time for erosian // evolution is gone . . .

evolution ===== hoax // scam !

Main Entry: sub·ter·ra·nean
Pronunciation: "s&b-t&-'rA-nE-&n, -ny&n
Variant(s): also sub·ter·ra·neous /-nE-&s, -ny&s/
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin subterraneus, from sub- + terra earth -- more at THIRST
Date: 1603
1 : being, lying, or operating under the surface of the earth
2 : existing or working in secret : HIDDEN
- sub·ter·ra·nean·ly also sub·ter·ra·neous·ly adverb

[dirtboy]

Fossils in the Burgess Shale similar in time and complexity to the Ediacaran fauna

Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie.

[dirtboy]

No pre cambrian fossils .. .. ..

There are plenty of Pre-cambrian fossils. What distiniguishes the Cambrian is a sudden explosion of forms and complexity, but there was multi-cellular life for hundreds of millions of years prior.

[f.Christian]

The only thing in the lower cambrian is 'worm // shell' fossils . . . nothing below - - - it's over !

[dirtboy]

Narbonne and Gehling of Queen’s University, Ontario, were surprised by the “unexpectedly large size and complexity“ of the fossils (some up to nearly 2 meters long), which imply “animals appeared very soon after the meltdown of the ‘snowball’ glaciers.” (Here they are referring to the “snowball earth” hypothesis of a worldwide glaciation, “the most severe ice age Earth has ever known” assumed to have occurred before life arose.)

Got the facts wrong again. There were several periods of glaciation in the late Precambrian, from roughly 750 million years ago to about 500 million years ago or so. But the oldest generally verifiable fossils are 3.5 billion years old, so life arose BEFORE the glaciation events in question.

This article is full of inaccuracies, even by creationist standards.

[dirtboy]

The only thing in the lower cambrian is 'worm // shell' fossils . . . nothing below - - - it's over !

That's not what you said. You said this:

No pre cambrian fossils .. .. ..

Which one is it? BTW, the most advanced animal in the Cambrian is a primative fish. No amphibians, reptiles, birds or mammals. No land plants or animals. But somehow, changing the details of the Cambrian Explosion is proof of creationism...

[MineralMan]

I note that the piece is quoted from a Creationist source. I didn't see the actual piece in Geology. Do you suppose the Creationist folks _interpreted_ the scientific evidence to suit their bias? Nah...they wouldn't do that.

[f.Christian]

The bottom half of the geologic column (( no fossils )) formed from below . . .

and the top half formed rather quickly from above (( no intermediary fossils )) - - -

uniformism (( time )) // evolution is ==== gone // over // never happened !

[dirtboy]

The bottom half of the geologic column (( no fossils )) formed from below . . .

Wrong. The geologic column is roughly 4.5 billion years old. Fossils appeared somewhere between 3.8 and 3.5 billion years ago. So first of all, you don't even have your fractions correct (the time from the Cambrian forward represents about twelve percent of the history of the earth), and second, the bottom half of the geologic column, whether you describe it as Pre-cambrian or simply the first 2.25 billion years of the Earth, does have fossils.

If you want to believe in Genesis, that's your business. But don't distort clear geologic facts in an effort to fit the reality of the rocks to fit your point of view.

[jpsb]

"But the oldest generally verifiable fossils are 3.5 billion "

No way! Earth was lifeless until 1 billion B.C. In fact the earth is only 4 billion years old and probably still pretty hot 3.5 billion years ago.

[MineralMan]

"The bottom half of the geologic column (( no fossils )) formed from below . . .

and the top half formed rather quickly from above (( no intermediary fossils )) - - -
"

And your expertise in Geology comes from where? The geologic column doesn't work the way you say. The bottom layer is definitely from inside the earth, but that's not enough. You see, those igneous layers wouldn't have any life in them, now would they. Fossilization happens in sedimentary layers, on top of those others. We have base layers that can be dated to roughly 23.5 _billion years_ old. On top of those are the sedimentary layers, sometimes overlaid by additional flows of igneous material.

The stuff you're spouting makes no sense at all, geologically. There's no single "bottom layer" of the earth. There are many igneous flows and uprisings. Some are billions of years old, while others, as in Hawaii, are just weeks old. On top of each, sediments tend to form. The dust collecting on the recent Hawaiian and Italian lava flows is the first new layer. No fossils there either. Come back in 50,000 years, though, and you'll probably find some.

[dirtboy]

No way! Earth was lifeless until 1 billion B.C. In fact the earth is only 4 billion years old and probably still pretty hot 3.5 billion years ago.

Wrongo, bison breath. Ever hear of stromatolites? They date back more than three billion years. The rocks of the Pre-cambrian shield up in Canada have reefs of them.

[MineralMan]

"No way! Earth was lifeless until 1 billion B.C. In fact the earth is only 4 billion years old and probably still pretty hot 3.5 billion years ago."

Nah. You really should do some reading in this area before starting to talk. Otherwise you keep saying incorrect things.

[js1138]

If that's where she lives, you should go down there occasionally.

[f.Christian]

Oil and coal are earth generated . . . evolution is all a hoax ====== no pre cambrian fossils ! (( period ))

[woofer]

Fossils in the Burgess Shale similar in time and complexity to the Ediacaran fauna

Your reply: Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie.

Somehow, I can't get this picture out of my mind of you with both your hands over your ears as you type this. Were you saying these words as you typed?