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From: lonetto@phri.UUCP (Michael Lonetto)
Newsgroups: net.origins
Subject: Re: Isolation and Unique Species
Message-ID: <204@phri.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 18-Apr-85 20:01:03 EST
Article-I.D.: phri.204
Posted: Thu Apr 18 20:01:03 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 20-Apr-85 06:34:12 EST
References: <217@ihnet.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: Public Health Research Inst. (NY, NY)
Lines: 45

> < I am an island >
> 
> 	So often I have read words to the effect:
> "All you have is some fossils, and carbon radiometric dating ... ".
> Surprisingly, these comments typically receive very few rebuttals.
> In my last article, I mentioned the substantial independent
> biochemical evidence supporting evolution.
> This evidence is ubiquitous, and simple reproducible experiments
> repeatedly verify its existence.
> 



> 	I give a long sigh myself, but for other reasons.
> The islands were not there when animals first appeared.
> (I am not dealing with the "young earth" or "God is fooling our eyes" camps.)
> Furthermore, the diversity of unique island species is highly correlated
> with the island's time of isolation, and the number of niches on it.
> Why should Hawaii have 4/5 of the world's drosophila species?
> It doesn't contain 4/5 of the world's land area.
> Rather, it provided many different environments,
> and isolation (not many fly eaters).  These short-generation animals quickly
> evolved into a dizzying number of species.
> Why were 90% of Hawaii's indigenous plants unique?
> Why are island animals (e.g. turtles) larger than their mainland counterparts?
> Why do birds become large and flightless on islands.
> Is flying expensive, and hard to justify without cats around,
> or did God just snap his/her fingers again.
> Why does evolution explain most of these phenomena.
> Why can creationism explain none of this,
> without resorting to coincidence, or continual divine intervention (unlikely).
> 

> Karl Dahlke    ihnp4!ihnet!eklhad

*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE ***
As a biochemist interested in evolution I have followed this net with some
interest for the past several months.  This is the first mention I have 
seen of what I consider the strongest evidence available (now) for the 
evolution of species by natural selection.  The Hawaiin Drosophila that
Karl mentions are closely related to each other and somewhat less closely
related to other Drosophila species.  The interesting point is that a 
mechanism now exists to explain rapid speciation in the genus Drosophila.
I am not sure of my ability to present this to the net, but I will make an
effort anyway.