On Monday, September 12, 2016 we visited the Ark Encounter in Kentucky. One of my goals was to find as many birds as I could on the Ark. Dan and I were on vacation for almost two weeks and the highlight of our trip was a visit to the Ark. When you first see the size of the, it is overwhelming. The picture below is almost deceiving. The Ark spans ” 510 feet long, 85 feet wide, and 51 feet high.” (From the website)
Dan and I sitting way out front.
“And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them. Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.” (Genesis 6:19-22 KJV)
The first bird I observed was a carved bird in a workshop on board the Ark. It appears to be a dove, maybe.
Bird being carved in Workshop
The Workshop with the Dove
Then we saw a dove resting before its next venture out of the Ark.
Dove resting on board the Ark
“And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.” (Genesis 8:11-12 KJV)
The next dove we saw was on a mural depicting various events in Genesis.
Mural Showing the Dove on the Ark
Mural on the Ark
Stay tuned as the other birds are revealed. We know from Scripture that there were seven pairs of every “kind” of birds/fowls on board the ark. I have more to show you.
“And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.” (Genesis 7:1-3 KJV)
FOSSIL INVENTORY: SURPRISES FOR SOME by Creation Moments
“And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.” (Genesis 1:24)
Everyone will remember those school textbook diagrams showing the ever-upward progression of living organisms, including man. We recall the horse series, found in textbooks and the museum displays showing the evolution of the horse – the first stage as a small mammal and, after several transitions, the modern horse. The claim that fossils in the rock layers show a progression from simple life in the lowest layers to the most complex life at the top accompanies these diagrams.
Horse series diagram promoting evolution from I.C.R.
Recently, the journal Science, reported that paleobiologists who study these fossils reevaluated all the fossil-bearing rocks that have been found in the last 180 years. What was their reaction to the meaning of the fossil record after their new inventory? “We may have been misled for twenty years,” said one scientist. Another commented, “For the first time, a large group of people is saying paleobiology has been making a mistake.” Why are they reacting this way? They have had to conclude, on the basis of the fossil evidence, that there never was an ever-upward progression of complexity of life forms as they had expected. The species that are represented in the fossil record show no evidence of the classic evolutionary development traditionally found in school textbooks.
In short, the fossil record supports the biblical claim that all the kinds of animals appeared about the same time.
Prayer: I thank You, Lord, for the great diversity and beauty You have created in the living world. Amen.
“A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it.” (Genesis 6:16 KJV)
Bay-backed Shrike (Lanius vittatus) by Nikhil Devasar
Remember that thou magnify his work, which men behold. (Job 36:24)
This is the second part of our review of the Passeriformes – Songbird families, which were all presented weekly. The slide show will show one or two photos from each family. These are in taxonomic order. Part I of the Review covered the New Zealand Wrens to Mottled Berry Hunters. This week we will review the Ioras to the Babblers.
Also, the links to these families will be listed and the article associated with them. There will be one more review (III). There are 131 families. All total, there are over 6,000 birds in these families and thankfully, most of them we were able to show. Some photos are protected by copyright and it was not possible to find a photo. Yet, there were more show than we would ever be able to see individually, in person.
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:” (1 Peter 2:9 KJV)
Ibises and Wood Storks – Some coming out into the sun at Lake Morton by Lee
My friend from Australia, whom I’ve met through blogging, has a really interesting post. It is about the Lyrebird which we have written about before. He has a segment about a young lyrebird practicing his mating dance. I love it. There are other birds mentioned also. Aussiebirder always has neat articles. Enjoy!
As we leave an unusually wet winter and enter the beautiful early spring, with wildflowers blooming, I took off early one morning into the Southern Highlands to Barren Grounds National Park for another attempt at finding the elusive and endangered Eastern Ground Parrot.
Above photo is taken from the sign in the park of the two endangered species of birds in Australia which live in the scrubby heathlands of the highlands. One reason why these birds have become endangered is that both these birds are predominately ground dwellers, and seldom fly. This makes them very vulnerable to predators, especially humans, ferule cats and foxes.
………….To read the rest of the article and see his video and recordings CLICK HERE:
Thanks, AussieBirder, for such an interesting article.
“But now ask the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee;” (Job 12:7)
Almost everyone in the world today knows of the terrible disaster that struck the coasts of South East Asia. The North American news media gave daily body counts, reported human tragedy and inflicted damage … yet, as far as is known, none mentioned the animals.
However, Asian reports from the damaged areas comment not only on the ability of trees to withstand the devastating waves but the almost total absence of animal deaths. It appears that the animals, from flamingos to elephants, took off for the hills long before the humans. The Chinese have done extensive investigations on animals and earthquake detection but are at a loss to explain it. Chinese scientists simply conclude that animals have far greater sensitivity than the best of scientific instruments.
Reuters reported from Thailand that the elephants used in the tourist business at Khao Lak began to “cry” at 9 am, about the time of the quake. Some elephants broke their hefty chains, but they all raced away toward the jungle-clad hills, taking their surprised tourists and guides with them. Some people were even picked up by the elephants using their trunks. They all came to a point on high ground where the waves stopped just short of where they stood. Three thousand, eight hundred people died in that area. God is merciful to those sensitive enough to His warnings.
Prayer:
We thank You, Father, for teaching us by this example of our insensitivity to Your warning signs and Your mercy to the animals. Amen.
Notes:
Reuters. Mark Bendeich, “Jumbos Save Tourists from Tsunami.” January 03, 2005. Photo: Elephants in Thailand. Courtesy of Siebrand. (CC BY-SA 3.0)
“Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;” (1Ch 16:12)
Now that the Passeriformes – Songbird families were all presented weekly, let’s review these families. The slide show will show one photo from each family. These will be in taxonomic order.
Also, the links to these families will be listed and the article associated with them. This will be a several week review. There are 131 families. All total, there are over 6,000 birds in these families and thankfully, most of them we were able to show. Some photos are protected by copyright and it was not possible to find a photo. Yet, there were more show than we would ever be able to see individually, in person.