Moore on mammals appearing suddenly in the fossil record

From EvoWiki

Contents 1 Quoted person 2 Quote 3 Source 4 Original source 5 Responses 6 References 7 External Links 8 See also 9 Acknowledgments

Quoted person

John N. Moore

Quote

This agrees with the extensive study made by the Geological Society of London and the Palaeontological Association of England. Professor of natural science John N. Moore reported on the results: "Some 120 scientists, all specialists, prepared 30 chapters in a monumental work of over 800 pages to present the fossil record for plants and animals divided into about 2,500 groups... Each major form or kind of plant and animal is shown to have a separate and distinct history from all the other forms or kinds! Groups of both plants and animals appear suddenly in the fossil record... Whales, bats, horses, primates, elephants, hares, squirrels, etc., all are as distinct at their first appearance as they are now. There is not a trace of a common ancestor, much less a link with any reptile, the supposed progenitor."

Source

• Anon, 1985. Life--How Did It Get Here? By Evolution or By Creation? Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., p. 65
• New Scientist, "Letters", Sept 15, 1983, p. 798 (not verified)

Original source

• Should Evolution be Taught?, by John N. Moore, 1970, pp, 9,14, 24 (not verified)

Responses

• Through an extensive Internet search I could not find a reference to the aforementioned study, outside of this quote.
• John Moore was one of the founding members of the Creation Research Society. This does not immediately invalidate his claim, but it does indicate that it may be the product of preconceptions.
• The terms "form" and "kind" used in this quote do not refer to usual scientific classifications of organisms.
• Amniotes include reptiles and mammals. Thus, mammals evolved as a sister group to reptiles.
• All mammals likely descended from a single group of eucynodonts.
• Most orders of placental mammals diverged about 100 to 85 million years ago. Whales are descended from early carnivorous, even-toed ungulates, horses from early perissodactyls, primates from plesiadapiformes or a common ancestor to both, elephants likely from amphibious hyracoids, hares from early lagomorphs, and squirrels from rodent-like mammals. There is little fossil evidence of the evolution of bats.

References

1. The Fossil Record Considered. C.A.R.E. Minestries of Winnepeg. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
2. Cynodont. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
3. Evolution of mammals. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
4. Evolution of cetaceans. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
5. Horse. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
6. Elephant. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
7. Leporidae. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.
8. Rodent. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.

External Links

• Fossil-based family tree of placental mammals. Wikipedia.
• Gish, Duane The Origin of Mammals. Institute for Creation Research.

See also

• Whales, bats, horses, primates, elephants, hares, squirrels were as different when they first appeared as they are now
• Transitional fossils are lacking
• The fossil record shows sudden appearance followed by stasis

Acknowledgments

zieber