Restoration Ecology | The Institute for Creation Research

 
Restoration Ecology

Every field of science we turn to supports the creation model. One fascinating field of biology is called restoration ecology. After the violent eruption (both magmatic and phreatic) of Mount St. Helens in May of 1980, the features surrounding the mountain looked eerily like a lunar landscape—nothing had survived. Most evolutionary biologists predicted it would take many, many years for the land to repair itself through the laborious reestablishment of both animals and plants.

Amazingly, within just a few years we found a bountiful supply of plants and animals where there was just hot, cracked mud and rock before. There are insects everywhere, trees and wild flowers on the pumice plain, fish in the lake, birds nesting, a huge elk herd, and innumerable gophers churning the soil.

As creationists, we can see restoration of the post-Flood world would not have to take the enormous amounts of time that skeptics posit. Plants would have survived as seeds, spores, and sprigs. Insect larvae would have survived on floating debris. Land animals would have migrated from the Ark to fill the unfilled ecological niches.

Indeed, evolutionists Starr and Taggart state in their 1998 college biology text something that Noah may very well have said as he and his family filed off the Ark with the animals in tow:

“. . . deliberate ecological restoration [Genesis 6:18–21] can often repair a damaged climax community [the pre-Flood world], provided that suitable species [pairs of animals and plants and insects] are available [on the Ark ] to reinstate the original biodiversity.”

Cite this article: Frank Sherwin, D.Sc. (Hon.). 2001. Restoration Ecology. Acts & Facts. 30 (12).

The Latest
NEWS
The Lipstick Vine: Evidence of Designed Adaption
In their desire to validate the questionable case for evolution, conventional biologists will appeal to local adaptation, variation, and ecological...

NEWS
Biblical Giants in the News
Recent claims that an Egyptian papyrus scroll may affirm the past existence of giants have gone viral,1,2 and news outlets still reported...

NEWS
March 2026 ICR Wallpaper
"Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert." (Isaiah...

ACTS & FACTS
Creation Kids: Ladybugs
Hi, kids! We created a special Acts & Facts just for you! Have fun doing the activities while learning about the wonderful world God...

ACTS & FACTS
North Cascades National Park: Assembled During the Flood and...
North Cascades National Park is sometimes called “the American Alps” for its stunning vistas that average about 5,000 feet above sea level,...

ACTS & FACTS
Engineered Genomic Changes in Adaptation
Programmed genome rearrangements (PGRs) are deliberate, genetically controlled changes in an organism’s DNA sequence and chromosome structure...

ACTS & FACTS
How Can I Know Evolution Is Wrong?
Evolution pushes Christians to doubt what our Bibles say about creation by asserting impersonal processes made everything over eons. Scripture asserts...

ACTS & FACTS
What Is a Charitable Gift Annuity?
A charitable gift annuity (CGA) is a simple, proven way to make a gift to ICR and receive fixed income for life—often at rates higher than CDs....

ACTS & FACTS
ICR in Thailand
As the unified body of Christ, we marvel when individual notes come together to form beautiful harmonic chords. Dino Dave and Dr. Brian were blessed...

ACTS & FACTS
Making a TOBD Easy: A Conversation That Says It All
“I get what you’re saying! And I would love to think about biology from a design perspective, but I don’t even know where to begin,”...