In the last week a dolphin was photographed with vestigial legs behind its hind fins.?

Question

Is this evolution in reverse? Are marine mammals coming back on land? Would Darwin be proud? It reminds me of the bumper sticker with the Christian symbol of the fish, only with legs, and the word Darwin inside the symbol. If evolution comes back in another form; is it revolution?

Answer 1

All marine mammals (whales, dolphins) have vestigial rear limbs (small pelvic bones) and they also have remnants of clavicles (collar bones). Therefore, the captured dolphin would represent a "mutation" whereby the bones had greater growth than normal, much like humans can have abnormal growth of the coccyx, looking similar to a tail.
Remember - with evolution, once you lose something, you can't get it back ,so there isnt any way that you could get "reverse" evolution. Darwin wouldn't be "proud". Darwin would be more happy to think that he was no longer being ridiculed for his findings and that scientists were investigating our natural world rather than just assuming everything happened through divine intervention. Darwin would think this dolphin to be an interesting mutation and further provide evidence of the evolution of mammals. Evolution has no motive, it just happens due to natural selection and selective pressures, so Darwin would not think that something is being achieved by this and would simply see it for what it is.

Answer 2

Actually, scientists believe the extra fins were throwbacks of hind legs. No one thinks dolphins are suddenly growing legs because they want to come back on land. I suppose these things happen the same way we still have our wisdom teeth but no longer need them, so we get them removed. Scientists view the additional fins as evidence that dolphins once were landbound creatures who gravitated toward the ocean. They say dolphins and hippos share a common ancestor.

Answer 3

Nope.
Simple genetics.
We all carry all the genes from our progenitors. They become recessive and are rarely expressed, but the genetic propensity for such things as scales, webbed toes and fingers, nictating membranes, tails, fur, etc. are all present in the human genome.
For marine mammals like dolphins, which are thought to be descendants of a large, bear-like land mammal that returned to sea aeons ago, the genetic codes for legs are evidently still in their genome.
Cheers.

Answer 4

I have not have been given any quarrel with evolution, yet this isn't any longer the superb argument for it, on the grounds that interior the introduction tale it specifically says God replaced the serpent to flow from strolling to going "on its abdomen." so as that could desire to easily as properly be used as an argument for the introduction tale. upload--each little thing interior the introduction account is a metaphor for some thing interior the international of the people who embraced it as their sacred tale. i'm no longer announcing it did no longer ensue traditionally and bodily--for all i be conscious of it did. yet the two way, this is the metaphor that counts. you need to ask a number of the Jewish posters who study the greater-biblical money owed and kabbalah approximately this. the easily introduction tale isn't that a strategies off from area of evolutionary theory and the enormous Bang. this is rather pleasing stuff.

Answer 5

I have found some sources that mention it

Are their any dolphins species that this is common in?

Answer 6

lol thats funny but i guess it is possible since dolphines originated from land mamals which originated from marine animals.

Cycle: sea (1M yeare) --> land (.5 M years --> sea 2.8 M years --> land X years :P

Answer 7

Psssst it was sea to land not land to sea

Answer 8

then maybe it will be the end of mankind as the top species, if sharks starts to walk the earth too ...

Answer 9

They will be up and walking before you know it!