This is amazing. In Montana, scientists have discovered a mosquito that is still carrying blood from animals in the Eocene — that is some 46 million years ago. Of course, creationists would point out that scientists are again some 46 million years off since the Earth is only a few thousand years old.
The mosquito was found in oil shale and remains engorged with ancient blood. It is believed to be the first of its kind and was announced in this week’s issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Four prior “blood-eating” fossil records have been uncovered and this is the first mosquito with traces of blood. It is very rare to find a mosquito due to the environment in which they operated despite the portrayal in the movie “Jurassic Park.”
There is no word on the blood that it is carrying. The Eocene represents the period at end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. This includes a major extinction event called the Grande Coupure (the “Great Break” in continuity) or the Eocene–Oligocene extinction event. The animals included mammals such as artiodactyls, perissodactyls and primates, which tended to be small. It later included modern ungulates (hoofed animals) as well as carnivorous ungulates and early forms of bats, proboscidians (elephants), primates, rodents and marsupials.
Bron,
We now know that most evolutionary changes occur far faster than was understood even a few years ago. The real secret of evolution is DNA accidents. Fragmenting DNA, and so on. The better model has a better chance of surviving.
Jude:
sure it is, if the oxygen content of the atmosphere was higher than it is now, it would have supported larger insects. Shaq is still homo sapiens.
Bob Kauten:
I personally dont believe that a wolf like creature turns into a blue whale because of the need to chase prey into the water.
Elephants are “evolving” in Asia because hunters are shooting elephants with large tusks so those traits are no longer heritable. The elephants are not evolving they are still elephants and will probably remain elephants just as dogs may have been selectively bred for different characteristics, yet over thousands of years and more generations they are still dogs. They havent evolved into cats or some other creature.
Pressure from external environmental factors will only change an animal so much. Like in the example of the elephants losing their tusks. Or take cystic fibrosis in humans, that mutation allowed our ancestors to survive cholera and typhus. But we are still humans.
There had to be genetic mutations along with interbreeding of species to get those sorts of dynamic changes even over millions of years. It wasnt something to do with prey or a change in the environment. Those would have, in my opinion, caused minor changes such as the CF gene or the elephant tusk.
Which goes back to Ter ber’s statment. I think we should be asking what causes genetic stability in a species so that it doesnt evolve over time? The answer isnt that it is now perfectly adapted so that it doesnt have to change.
Not to mention, we don’t know what size it is. The photo gives us nothing on that. It could be as large as a human hand, or twice the size of a modern mosquito. We know nothing about that from this photo. If it is a different size, then Ter Ber’s point isn’t a point at all.
Bron,
It’s most likely not the same species of mosquito. It looks similar to a modern mosquito because the mosquito found a niche in which that body type works well.
She’s an insect, so she has six legs. She’s gotta fly, so she has wings. She sucks blood, so she has the mouth parts for that.
Ter ber is making a superficial observation probably in hopes of throwing doubt on evolution. It didn’t work. Maybe with young children.
Ter ber can correct me if I’m misjudging.
The adults don’t need to be drawn in by this silliness.
And what OS stated very well.
that mosquito looks like the ones that I swat during the summer. 40 million years later.
Ter ber brings up an interesting point.
Mosquitoes, like other insects, have continued to evolve. For example, they have developed resistance to overused insecticides, such as DDT. DNA testing of two different strains of Anopheles gambiae the most prevalent vector for malaria in Africa, appear to be diverging into two different species of insect. On the Galapagos islands, it seems mosquitoes have developed the ability to digest reptile blood, which is not good news for the turtles and other reptiles.
As far as their wings and general body shapes are concerned, we know that once an optimum aerodynamic capability develops, evolutionary branches that are not as efficient cannot compete and do not survive. Very early mosquitoes were less efficient and evolution took care of that by ensuring the survival of those strains which were most efficient at what they do in order to propagate the species.
So, mosquitoes continue to evolve.
Amazing! That the theory of evolution does not show the mosquito evolving after 40 million years, its still a mosquito. wow.
Tootie, nothing in your rambling, incoherent post came anything close to a valid point. i award you no points and may whatever deity you believe in have mercy on your soul.
1. By your final logic about eggs, having a hysterectomy is murder.
2. Eagles are not overpopulated, unlike humans.
3. This data suggests that life is not young on this planet.
NSA director Keith Alexander admitted he lied about his vast surveillance dragnet having stopped 54 terrorist plots.
http://www.allgov.com/news/controversies/nsa-director-alexander-admits-he-lied-about-phone-surveillance-stopping-54-terror-plots-131007?news=851326
“Data” is New Yorkie lingo for having a date with a blond. And the data shows that both New Yorkies and blonds do not get along. Otherwise there would be more blonds in NYC and they would be baptized. What BS this apCray is. God created Dog on the 8th Day and this was long after these guys say blood was around. This is only year 2013.
Data, data, bo bata,
banana fanna fo fatta
DATA!
If the first two letters are ever the same,
Ya drop them both and say the name,,,,
This is complete BS. These schmucks could not get blood out of a turnip.
Because there is none.
Tootie,
Wrong. On several points. Break it down for me, fellas.
1. There’s no data for a young creation.
2. The biblical timeframe is not anti-science. It has no relationship with science, one way or the other. The Easter Bunny is not anti-science. Last I heard, he/she had no opinion on science.
3. There’s no body of facts to the contrary, regarding age of the earth.
4. Abortion, with which you seem obsessed, has nothing to do with this topic. Science has no opinion on the definition of murder.
5. Science doesn’t know anything. It’s a method of investigation, and a temporary repository of knowledge.
6. You refuse to believe in what the scientific method has revealed about the age of the earth. Then you use science to defend the subjugation of women.
Other than these minor quibbles, very good comment, Tootie.
LK,
Correct. Blood cells are not needed to extract DNA. For example, there are no blood cells of any kind, red or white, in either saliva or serum.
Maybe they did Dredd. Just because there’s no DNA in a red blood cell doesn’t mean there’s no DNA in a blood sample. There might be a white blood cell somewhere in that mosquito’s tummy and if not there are circumstance where soft tissue survives in the fossil record. Anything is possible.
“Scientists recover T. rex soft tissue
70 million-year-old fossil yields preserved blood vessels”
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/7285683/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/scientists-recover-t-rex-soft-tissue/#.Ul1f-dI3tns
I think I will trust the carbon dating system set up by science rather than believe in a book of fictional stories, Tootie.
There is a good deal of data that point to a young creation. This latest datum being one of them.
Bigots and the intolerant (often the godless) like portray those who believe in the biblical timeframe as anti science. In this case it is possible that not having a skeptical viewpoint is the anti scientific position since none of us were here to confirm the true date. These dating methods, however sophisticated, are not certain. And there remains a body of facts to the contrary.
This anti science mindset by the left and the god haters also shows up in the abortion issue. It is funny, tragically so, how it’s a crime to destroy an eagle egg, but not to destroy a human one. Science is tossed out the window whenever a leftist has a need to murder or destroy things.
Science knows the eagle race is intrinsic with the survival of the eagle egg. And it ought to know the human race is intrinsic with the survival of the human egg. Indeed, I’m sure it does know that by now.
That is why the support for abortion (certainly for most of it) is plain old murder.
Science supports that conclusion.
Wow.
Rare find.
Too bad the DNA machines did not survive.
SWEET, let’s remake some animals!
I miss Michael Crichton.