Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary Shenanigans | The Institute for Creation Research

Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary Shenanigans
Complex Cretaceous-Paleogene clay layer (gray) in the Geulhemmergroeve tunnels near Geulhem, the Netherlands. Finger is on the actual K-Pg boundary.

Evolution’s speculative story is filled with fanciful tales explaining natural phenomena that are actually best explained by the Bible’s narrative of history. Huge graveyards of fossilized plants and animals are found the world over in water-deposited sandstone, limestone, and shale rocks. Clearly, this is evidence of the global catastrophic deluge recorded in Genesis. To counter this, evolutionists concoct stories based on multiple extinction events to explain changes in the fossils found in strata.

Evolution’s speculative story is filled with fanciful tales explaining natural phenomena that are actually best explained by the Bible’s narrative of history. Tweet: Evolution’s speculative story is filled with fanciful tales explaining natural phenomena that are actually best explained by the Bible’s narrative of history.

Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary Shenanigans: https://www.icr.org/article/10388

@icrscience

One tale is that a huge asteroid slammed into Earth, selectively killing off the dinosaurs while somehow allowing more delicate mammals, birds, insects, fish, and plants to survive. Dinosaurs and many marine reptiles were mysteriously killed en masse and fossilized while many other animals lived. Evolutionists coincide this improbable extinction with the junction of two hypothetical evolutionary geological periods, the Cretaceous and the Paleogene—also called the K-Pg boundary.

But even by evolutionary standards, all is not well in Darwinland. A new paper has built evolutionary trees from huge DNA data sets for a wide array of mammals.1 The authors tried to determine if the evolution of animal groups, particularly placental mammals, took place before or after the K-Pg boundary. Much disagreement abounds on this question. Some evolutionists claim the origin of placental mammals occurred before the boundary, and others believe it happened mostly afterward. The fossil evidence seems to support a post-K-Pg scenario,2 while many DNA studies of living mammals (calibrated by fossil dates) indicate a pre-K-Pg origin.1,3-7 The conflicting results of genetic vs. paleontological studies in evolution are common and a source of evolutionary contention.8-9

While evolutionists continue squabbling, ICR research based on a biblical Flood framework is making significant strides. Tweet: While evolutionists continue squabbling, ICR research based on a biblical Flood framework is making significant strides.

Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary Shenanigans: https://www.icr.org/article/10388

@icrscience

The new study attempts to resolve the issue. The researchers used huge DNA data sets and new statistical data-smoothing techniques to help corral unruly genes and other DNA sequences that don’t behave according to evolutionary assumptions. The authors of the paper state, “Placental mammals underwent a continuous radiation across the K-Pg boundary without apparent interruption by the mass extinction,” and “the K-Pg catastrophe evidently played a limited role in placental diversification.”1 Amazing—the selective extinction properties of the asteroid impact story get even more incredible!

While evolutionists continue squabbling, ICR research based on a biblical Flood framework is making significant strides. Global Flood megasequences as determined from vast oil well and geological outcrop (exposed rock) data sets reveal that the K-Pg mystery can be deciphered in a better way.10 These studies show that the major rock layers covering the continents were laid down in a catastrophic ebb-and-flow model. The K-Pg boundary is found close to one of these ebb-and-flow depositional events. It lies near the boundary of the Tejas and Zuni Megasequences that represent the final two sedimentary packages deposited during the Flood. This offers a more satisfactory explanation of the sequence of fossils based on the ecological zonation of the pre-Flood world.11

There are no real extinction events in the rock record, only the last appearance of organisms as they were encapsulated by the tsunami-like floodwaters. Tweet: There are no real extinction events in the rock record, only the last appearance of organisms as they were encapsulated by the tsunami-like floodwaters.

Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary Shenanigans: https://www.icr.org/article/10388

@icrscience

There are no real extinction events in the rock record, only the last appearance of organisms as they were encapsulated by the tsunami-like floodwaters. Again, the Bible offers the best framework for scientific discovery because it depicts an accurate rendering of life and Earth history that better fits what we observe in the real world.

References

  1. Liu, L. et al. 2017. Genomic evidence reveals a radiation of placental mammals uninterrupted by the KPg boundary. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 114 (35): E7282-E7290.
  2. Archibald, J. D. and D. H. Deutschman. 2001. Quantitative Analysis of the Timing of the Origin and Diversification of Extant Placental Orders. Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 8 (2): 107-124.
  3. dos Reis, M., P. C. J. Donoghue, and Z. Yang. 2014. Neither phylogenomic nor palaeontological data support a Palaeogene origin of placental mammals. Biology Letters. 10 (1): 20131003.
  4. Meredith, R. W. et al. 2011. Impacts of the Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution and KPg Extinction on Mammal Diversification. Science. 334 (6055): 521-524.
  5. Bininda-Emonds, O. R. P. et al. 2007. The delayed rise of present-day mammals. Nature. 446 (7135): 507-512.
  6. dos Reis, M. et al. 2012. Phylogenomic datasets provide both precision and accuracy in estimating the timescale of placental mammal phylogeny. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 279 (1742): 3491-3500.
  7. Springer, M. S. et al. 2003. Placental mammal diversification and the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. 100 (3): 1056-1061.
  8. Tomkins, J. P. and J. Bergman. 2015. Evolutionary molecular genetic clocks—a perpetual exercise in futility and failureJournal of Creation. 29 (2): 26-35.
  9. Tomkins, J. P. 2017. Evolutionary Clock FutilityActs & Facts. 46 (3): 16.
  10. Clarey, T. 2015. Grappling with MegasequencesActs & Facts. 44 (4): 18-19.
  11. Clarey, T. 2015. Dinosaur Fossils in Late-Flood RocksActs & Facts. 44 (2): 16.

* Dr. Tomkins is Director of Life Sciences and Dr. Clarey is Research Associate at the Institute for Creation Research. Dr. Tomkins earned his Ph.D. in genetics from Clemson University, and Dr. Clarey earned his Ph.D. in geology from Western Michigan University.

Cite this article: Various Authors. 2018. Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary Shenanigans. Acts & Facts. 47 (1).

The Latest
CREATION PODCAST
Defending the Faith with a Rocket Scientist | Creation.Live Podcast:...
How do engineering principles, biological complexity, and a solid understanding of apologetics work together to further the cause of Christ? Why...

NEWS
Aerobic and Anaerobic Hot Spring Bacteria
God designed a domain of prokaryotes called Archaea that thrive in harsh and extreme environments. In 1969, two microbiologists, Thomas Brock and Hudson...

CREATION PODCAST
The Soulless Hominid Theory: A Fatal Flaw in Old Earth Creationism...
Welcome to the second episode in a series called “The Failures of Old Earth Creationism.” Many Christians attempt to fit...

NEWS
Humpback Whale Calls Echo Creation
There is nothing simple about the system of communication called language, whether animal or human.1 Human language is a very sophisticated...

NEWS
Mary Parker, Creation Ministry Partner of Dr. Gary Parker, Is...
Mary Parker, the wife and co-laborer of Dr. Gary Parker, went home to be with her Lord on March 20, 2025. Dr. Parker was a popular and effective...

NEWS
Plants Rely on Quantum Mechanics
Scientists will probably never fully understand photosynthesis as additional research uncovers even more fascinating mysteries.1,2 ICR’s...

NEWS
Martian Polar Ice Cap ''Surprisingly Young''?
A team of German planetary scientists has concluded that a three-kilometer-thick northern polar ice cap on Mars has a “surprisingly young”...

NEWS
''Blood Worm Moon'' Total Lunar Eclipse 2025
Barring cloud cover, about 75% of the country saw the total lunar eclipse, aka the “Blood Worm Moon.” Texas had good weather conditions...

NEWS
Jupiter: The Mighty Guardian of Earth
NASA’s Juno spacecraft recently unveiled breathtaking images of Jupiter during its 66th flyby of the colossal planet. Juno has been exploring...

CREATION PODCAST
Glacial Archives: Mysteries Hidden Beneath the Ice | The Creation...
Welcome to the first episode in a series called “The Failures of Old Earth Creationism.” Many Christians attempt to fit old earth...