New Fossil Dolphin Species Discovered | The Institute for Creation Research

New Fossil Dolphin Species Discovered
Who doesn’t like to watch the antics of the friendly dolphin? They are classified as Cetaceans (which also includes the porpoise and the whale). Creationists maintain cetaceans have always been cetaceans while evolutionists have a strange hypothesis regarding their origin.

They suggest millions of years ago marine mammals evolved from land mammals called even-toed ungulates (artiodactyls) and are related to the tiny mouse-deer (Chevrotains)! The required series of fossil creatures that would connect the two vastly different animals have yet to be found.

Indeed, what paleontologists have recently unearthed are simply more of the same – dolphins. But where they were found is interesting to say the least: landlocked Switzerland.1 Evolutionists think “21–17 million years ago” two previously unknown species of dolphins swam in an ocean in the “Mittelland” (Swiss Plateau region) as well as other aquatic creatures. “Switzerland at that time was part of an island landscape populated by fish, sharks and dolphins, with mussels and sea urchins on the seabed” said University of Zurich paleontologist Dr. Gabriel Aguirre-Fernández.2

How did this 100-m-thick sequence of fossil-bearing sediments (called the Upper Marine Molasse) form in what is now Switzerland? Fossil-bearing sediments are laid down by running water, such as what one would expect from a large flood.3 In addition, the catastrophic burial had to be rapid, preserving even the delicate parts of the animal, such as parts of the skull and inner ear.

Zoologists focused on fossilized bone containing the inner ear called periotics that aids in taxonomic information. The periotics were found in the Upper Marine Molasse, and the scientists used micro-computed tomography (high-resolution assessments) in their analysis. Dr. Aguirre stated 

“Thanks to micro-computed tomography, we were able to reconstruct the softer organs around the hard ear bones to create 3D models of the ears. This helped us better analyze the dolphins’ hearing ability.”2

This procedure did nothing to further evolution of course, but it did help to, “. . . identify two families of dolphins previously unknown in Switzerland”2 and helped scientists to better understand how dolphins can hear under water.

Common aquatic creatures rapidly entombed and preserved in landlocked Switzerland has all the earmarks of the global flood destroying the earth about 4,500 years ago recorded in Genesis.

References  
1. Aguirre-Fernández, G. et al. First records of extinct kentriodontid and squalodelphinid dolphins from the Upper Marine Molasse (Burdigalian age) of Switzerland and a reappraisal of the Swiss cetacean fauna. PeerJ. Posted on peerj.com May 16, 2022, accessed May 24, 2022.
2. Lazaro, E. 20-Million-Year-Old Fossils Reveal Two New Cetacean Species. Sci-news. Posted on sci-news.com May 19, 2022, accessed May 24, 2022.
3. Morris, J. and F. Sherwin. 2010. The Fossil Record: unearthing nature’s history of life. Dallas, Texas: Institute for Creation Research, Chapter 5. 


*Dr. Sherwin is Research Scientist at the Institute for Creation Research. He earned an M.A. in zoology from the University of Northern Colorado and received an Honorary Doctorate of Science from Pensacola Christian College.
The Latest
NEWS
April 2025 ICR Wallpaper
"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things...

NEWS
Human Evolution and the Inner Ear
The vain attempt by evolutionists to make an evolutionary connection between people and ape-like ancestors continues. This time, it is in regard to...

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...