Scientists have discovered footprints of a reptile said to have lived “350 billion years ago,” a finding that should force a revision of the evolution timeline. The footprints show an animal with reptile-like feet, long toes and hooked claws.
The discovery thus suggests that soon after animals supposedly emerged from the ocean around “400 million years” ago, they “evolved” the ability to live exclusively on land at a faster rate than scientists previously have believed.
“We had thought the transition from fin to limb took much longer,” said California State University paleontologist Stuart Sumida. Before now, the earliest known reptile footprints were found in Canada and dated to 318 million years ago.
The ancient Australian footprints were discovered on a sandstone slab near Melbourne. The animal was estimated to have been about 2 ½ feet long, and it may have resembled a modern monitor lizard.
Study co-author and paleontologist Per Ahlberg at Uppsala University in Sweden pointed to the hooked claws as evidence the animal was a walking animal. Only land animals have claws. Other vertebrates, fish and amphibians never have had hard nails. They require watery environments in order to lay eggs and reproduce.
Modern reptiles, birds, and mammals need nails and claws in order to walk on hard ground. “This is the earliest evidence we’ve ever seen of an animal with claws,” said Sumida.
The fossil footprints seem to record events that occurred in a single day. They show two or more reptiles running in opposite directions on ground before it hardened and was covered by sediment.
Fossil “trackways are beautiful because they tell you how something lived, not just what something looked like,” said co-author John Long, a paleontologist at Flinders University in Australia.
Comments: This story reminds us of a major problem with paleontology. Fossils don’t come buried with calendars or clocks. It is up to the discoverer of a fossil to date the finding. Sometimes, as in this case, paleontologists are forced by the evidence to revise the previously accepted evolution timeline.
There are so many assumptions that must be made when secular scientists deal with historical science. How do they know for a fact that marine life appeared on this planet eons before land animals? They don’t, of course, because water animals with their fins were created only one day before land animals with their claws were made.
There have been many discoveries which have contradicted Darwinism’s version of history. Birds that coexisted with dinosaurs when dinosaurs supposedly evolved into birds. Complex life appearing too early in the fossil record. A general rethink of the entire animal evolution timeline. (2019-03-ancient-prompt-rethink-animal-evolution (2).pdf)
Also, this story appears to offer another example of a living fossil. The footprints are said to resemble those of a monitor lizard. Monitor lizards are alive and well today. So, how much evolution has taken place in “350 million years” if lizard claws back then looked just like lizard claws today?
The interpretation made by the scientists of how the lizards died makes one think of the global flood. Events occurring in one day. Reptiles running. Footprints covered by sediment. We can’t say for sure, but it certainly sounds like Noah’s deluge.
The Bible’s version of history doesn’t need constant revisions. The chronogenealogies in the Bible help us to establish the fact the earth is about 6,000 years old. The systematic record of missing links in the fossil record and in the modern world shows that life was created “after their kinds” and not according to evolution. The Bible is true.
“Sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth.” John 17:17. And the Scriptures are as accurate about the future as they are about the past. That’s why we who believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior can confidently look forward to our wonderful future home in heaven.
by Warren Krug
Reference: The Associated Press, “Ancient reptile footprints upend theories about when animals evolved to live on land,” NBC News [May 15, 2025]. (Photo of a monitor lizard, from Microsoft Bing.)
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
Is it still safe to eat eggs?
The bird flu is infecting wild birds as well as domestic birds like chickens. But, so far, there is no evidence people can catch bird flu from eggs, poultry, or dairy products directly. Cook eggs or egg dishes to 165 degrees so that eggs are completely solid. The risk of catching avian flu in the U.S. is low.
Source: “Are Eggs Safe Right Now?” Consumer Reports On Health [May, 2025], page 32
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