Okay, I suppose I should get started- it is actually really difficult to just start writing a blog. I was looking for a good place to start and that got me thinking about evolution and where ‘we’ started. I love learning about evolution and the history of our species in particular. The evidence for evolution is so overwhelming I can’t believe I can still find things written by critics, implying that evolution is non-existent.
However, the clues are all around us!
“It is important to note that suddenly, and against all probability, a Sperm Whale had been called into existence, several miles above the surface of an alien planet and since this is not a naturally tenable position for a whale, this innocent creature had very little time to come to terms with its identity.”
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams.
Much as this whale spontaneously comes into existence in space, in the Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy, whales on Earth did not. In fact, they carry their own proof of evolution in the form of a vestigial pelvis and leg like structures. I believe the structures exist in some species of whale and some dolphins. The fact that the remnants of a lower limb structure exist provides strong evidence towards the fact that these sea dwelling mammal’s predecessors walked on land before adapting to a marine life.
However, the clues are all around us!
“It is important to note that suddenly, and against all probability, a Sperm Whale had been called into existence, several miles above the surface of an alien planet and since this is not a naturally tenable position for a whale, this innocent creature had very little time to come to terms with its identity.”
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams.
Much as this whale spontaneously comes into existence in space, in the Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy, whales on Earth did not. In fact, they carry their own proof of evolution in the form of a vestigial pelvis and leg like structures. I believe the structures exist in some species of whale and some dolphins. The fact that the remnants of a lower limb structure exist provides strong evidence towards the fact that these sea dwelling mammal’s predecessors walked on land before adapting to a marine life.
The first two images below are taken from http://www.edwardtbabinski.us/whales/evolution_of_whales/, as an example of the vestigial pelvic structure. 
The following picture is no necessarily scientifically accurate- it comes from http://www.envisioningscience.com/whale_skeleton.html , which may well be a graphic design company, however i like how it shows the pelvis as it would appear in the body of a whale.
If your interested:
I like this article- it’s a nice interest piece on the evolution of whales from land animals, it’s a bit old, but so are the fossils!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/1974869.stm
If you search online academic journals for information you'll find a wealth of papers on whales fossils and current anatomy. I didn't do much research for this post- I'm still warming upto this blogging business. But the real information is out there if you want it.
:) Michelle
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