Remarkably modern fossil skink found, according to reports in ScienceDaily 1 May 2019, and Journal of Vertebrate Palaeontology published online doi: 10.1080/02724634.2019.1577873.
Palaeontologist from Flinders University, Australia, who were excavating the Riversleigh fossil site in northern Australia have found a fossil skink “remarkably similar to modern social skinks”. Skinks are type of lizard common in Australia and include the well-known blue tongue lizard.
Kailah Thorn, who led the study of the fossil, described it: “This creature looked like something in-between a tree skink and a bluetongue lizard. It would have been about 25 cm long, and unlike any of the living species it was equipped with robust crushing jaws.”
Thorn went on to explain “The new fossil is unusually well-preserved, with much of the skull, and some limb bones, all from a single individual. It belongs to the genus Egernia, a modern species in this group which are often called ‘social skinks’ and are known for living in family groups, sharing rocky outcrops and hollow tree stumps.”
The new fossil has been named Egernia gillespieae and is dated as 14.8 million years old.
Editorial Comment: Finding a fossil skink that looked like modern skink might be remarkable for these scientists, but it is no surprise to us. It simply confirms that skinks have always been the ‘skink’ kind, and have reproduced after their kind, just as Genesis says. There is no evidence they evolved from any other creature, and the only change that has occurred since this fossil was buried is that they once had more robust jaws. This is a loss of structure – the opposite of evolution.
The Riversleigh fossil site has been excavated for many years, and scientists have found numerous fossils of a wide ranges of creatures, including mammals, reptiles, fish and invertebrates. The Australian Museum claims it has provided “a wealth of information about the evolution of the Australian fauna,” but in fact the Riversleigh fossils reveal that many Australian animals have either been the same as living ones or they have shrunk, and others have died out. Therefore, they are excellent evidence for creation after their kind followed by degeneration – exactly as Genesis says.
Evidence News vol. 19, No. 8
8 May 2019
Creation Research Australia
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