Christianity Science & Belief Origin of Life

Fossils as evidence for evolution Fossils show how much, or how little, organisms have changed over time. Fossils of the simplest organisms are found in the oldest rocks, and fossils of more complex organisms in the newest rocks. This supports the theory of evolution, which states that simple life forms gradually evolved into more complex ones.

Evolution of the Horse One of the few animals for which we have a fairly complete evolutionary record is the horse. All the main stages of the evolution of the horse have been preserved in fossil form. Over 60 million years, the horse evolved from a dog- sized creature that lived in rainforests into an animal adapted to living on the plains and standing up to 2 metres high. In the process its multi-toed feet, that were adapted for walking across the forest floor, evolved into single- toed hooves more suited for running over open country.

Evolution of the Horse time periodheight Modern horse1 million years ago1.6 metres Pliohippus10 million years ago1.0 metres Merychippus30 million years ago1.0 metres Mesohippus40 million years ago0.6 metres Eohippus60 million years ago0.4 metres

Transitional Fossils The fossil of a 375-million-year-old fish Tiktaalik roseae was discovered by a team of three palaeontologists. The crocodile-like fish, had front fins resembling limbs, with elbows and primitive wrists.

Tiktaalik roseae Fossil

Tiktaalik roseae Artists Impression

If evolution is true we should expect to see the simpler structures further down in the fossil record:

Strengths & Weaknesses One of the problems with the fossil record is that it contains gaps.