Did Noah take penguins and kangaroos on the ark?
If so, how did they get there?
The Bible clearly says that Noah was to take 2 of each kind of animal (and seven of some) onto the ark. This had to include penguins, polar bears and kangaroos. Animals which today live in very different ecosystems and continents.
But how did these animals get to the ark? And once there, how could they survive?
The Bible indicates that the "Pre-flood" world was much different than it is today, and likely to have been of uniform temperature everywhere (except at the poles).
The drastic and extreme climatic difference we have today did not exist before the flood. In fact they are a result of the flood itself (see my page on the Ice Age).
When God created the animals, he instilled in them an ability to adapt. God foresaw the entrance of sin and its effect on His perfect world. God created His creatures with an incredible ability to survive in various climates.
Some tropical animals can survive in cooler climates. And some animals that now live in Polar Regions can also survive in warmer temperatures.
Today marsupials live mainly in Australia. Penguins live in the Southern Hemisphere, while polar bears live in the north.
These diverse ecosystems did not exist prior to the flood (they are a result of it).
Kangaroos did not have to hop all the way from Australia to get on the ark.
Question from a reader:
"Either the animals crossed
oceans to get to the arc [sic] or they crossed oceans
to get to the present location. Either way the feat is impossible by most land animals."
8/9/01
Answer:
Kangaroos did not need to travel continents to get to the ark.
Today kangaroos only live in Australia. But prior to the flood, kangaroos and other animals most likely lived near Noah’s home.
Prior to the flood, the earth may have been one large landmass. Australia did not exist in its present location. Our present continents are shaped as a result of re-disposition of flood sediments, and receding flood waters.
After the flood there were land bridges (because of a lower sea level) that connected many of the continents.
Years later, the glaciers started to melt and the water level rose. This caused many land bridges to disappear.
The animals that were on these continents would be stuck there. Keep in mind too, that many animals were brought to the United States by explorers. They did not travel there themselves. The same may be true for animals in Australia.
For the animals that did migrate on foot, keep in mind one kangaroo would not have to hop all the way to Australia. A group could travel, dying and reproducing for many years along the way. There was probably a lot of trial and error looking for a climate that suited them, in combination with a amble source of food. It's not as if they had Australia as a goal.
Some polar bears actually enjoy warm temperatures. And can survive in either warm or cold.
This is intelligent design on Gods part.
Many cars have both heaters and air conditioners. This is not because of Evolution, but because the guy who designed them was pretty smart. Knowing that some cars would be transported to warm and some to cold climates.
Many animals that have specific diets, or temperature requirements may actually be the result of adaptations. We can’t say that just because an animal only eats one kind of food today, that it always ate only that kind of food.
On July 10, 2000 I received an email from a man named John. He asks the following question:
You tackle the problem of how various animals get to the Ark, but you don't
address the converse -- how did the animals get from Ararat to their
present-day locations? Let's focus on a particular animal -- the koala.
It's an arboreal animal, with a highly specialized diet of eucalyptus
leaves. Are you *sure* that such an animal could cross on foot from the
Near East through Asia and somehow swim from Indonesia to Australia without
starving or falling victim to disease, predation, or accident? It would
take on the order of years for such an animal to accomplish the journey.
And because the Flood has happened, we have the world as we recognize it,
complete with all kinds of natural barriers (deserts, mountains, and
oceans) and a wide range of climates.
The same holds true for New World animals. Again, they would have had to
trek across the entire Asian continent to the Bering Strait, swim across to
Alaska, and make their way down to South America (or, alternately, walk
around the Mediterranean and swim across the Atlantic).
Just wondered if you had some ideas on this."
John Bode
"I was reading your page "How did penguins and kangaroos get on Noah's
Ark?", and wanted to ask a question or two.
Here is a good answer taken from John Woodmorappe's book:” Noah’s ark: A Feasibility study”.
Proof that stenophagy
can arise rapidly is provided by the example of some Hawaiian moths that have apparently acquired, through microevolution, a strong obligatory dietary preference for the banana (Myers 1985, p. 6; Zimmerman 1960). The banana had been introduced to Hawaii only some 1,000 years ago.
It is likewise possible that the bamboo-centered diet of the
panda is of post-Diluvian micro evolutionary origin.
This can be seen in the strongly bamboo-centered diet
seen in a species of the primate Hapalemur (Meier et al. 1987). Since other species of this genus are not strict bamboo-eaters (Meier et al. 1987, p. 214), it is obvious that we have
a case of variation within the kind, even if the kind were no broader than the species.
There is some evidence that the panda’s bamboo-centered diet and the koala’s Eucalyptus diet are degenerative adaptations. This includes the low nutritional quality of the bamboo and Eucalyptus, as well as the panda’s craving for unnatural foods (e.g., metallic copper and iron: Schaller 1993, p. 61), and the koala’s apparent addiction to Eucalyptus oil (Spinney 1994).
“Prior to the Flood, the koala may have had a relatively
catholic diet. After its release from the Ark, some of
the koala individuals may have acquired, through
microevolution, the strong dietary preference for
Eucalyptus. Once the other koalas were driven to
extinction, only the strict Eucalyptus eaters remained.
The koala could certainly have acquired its obligatory
dietary preference for Eucalyptus in only several thousand
years since the Flood." (pg 117 Noah's ark: A Feasibility study)
Question: "If koalas migrated from the Middle East to Australia over the course of
some 4000 years since the flood, there would be some evidence of their passing through, for example: skeletons or
individual bones (of the old, weak or those taken as prey). I take it you have some reliable evidence that supports this that you can show me?
Dr David Norman, Sydney, NSW, Australia (email dated 14 June 2001)
Answer: There need not be fossils or bones of koalas in these areas, as not every animal that ever lived is fossilized, or preserved. Ask anyone who studies fossils, and they will tell you of the lack of fossils for any species from koalas to dinosaurs.
Question:
"Why did koalas migrate ONLY to Australia? Eucalyptus species grow natively in the Middle East, North Africa, South Africa and parts of South America (where they are NOT introduced species). All these places are closer than Australia and do not require the
"land bridge" explanation to support them (except South America). So why do you feel that that koalas came all the way here to Australia absolutely exclusively?
Dr David Norman, Sydney, NSW, Australia (email dated 14 June 2001)
Answer:The koala likely migrated many places, like all other animals after the flood. Over the centuries it may have become better adapted to the climate in Australia, or through degeneration (loss of complexity after the fall of man in the Garden of Eden) have limited itself so much that it can only live in this area, or survive on this kind of diet.
John Woodmorappe answers many questions about the ark and the animals on it, in great detail in his book "Noah’s ark: A Feasibility study". There is stuff in this book that would quiet any skeptic. So if you have any questions, comments or objections about the animals or the ark please email me and let me know. I can forward an online copy of the book to you.
If you have any questions on Creation, Evolution, or just want to say "Hi" please feel free to email me.
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