Deadly Liaisons
Harun YahyaIn this program Animal Planet gave a rather negative indication of its level of understanding of the question of the origin of life. This documentary about snakes contained the following statements about a snake which feeds on chicks in bird nests out in open ground:
Eight chicks are enough for it (the snake). It needs to be large to consume a large number of chicks. Large chicks are better. It is for this reason that snakes have evolved to such giant dimensions.
In these lines the reason why some species of snake are large is given as their consuming a great deal. This account is put forward in such a way as to leave no room for doubt, and expressions implying absolute certainty, such as "It is for this reason that..." are employed.
In fact however, although this expression is an indication of absolute certainty, there is no "certainty" at all in Animal Planet’s evolutionary claim. Indeed, far from being "certain," Animal Planet’s claim is totally unscientific. That is because the program refers to snakes evolving and growing the more they eat.
Growth through enormous consumption is a trait acquired during life, and such traits cannot be handed on to later generations. This has been known to science for around a hundred years. In order for a trait to be handed on to subsequent generations it needs to be based upon mutations in the sexual cells. The number of chicks eaten by a snake plays no role in these mutations. To claim that a small snake could assume the dimensions of a python by eating chicks is therefore, to put it in a word, nonsense. (For further details on this venerable error, known as the Lamarckian model of evolution, see The Evolution Deceit, by Harun Yahya.)
