The post-Flood world must have been very wet, and it is therefore not surprising to find numerous algal deposits with ferns, reeds, reed fish, and dragonfly nests in these deposits. Furthermore, very wet and hazardous conditions are implied by the numerous inland basins and relics of giant lakes.

Today's Great Salt Lake in Utah, USA, is about 6% of its original size, and only fractionally as deep as it was originally. In fact, it is estimated that the lake must have been some 230 meters deep at one stage. Collapsed limestone caves from this time period also contain fossils of bats which date from the post-flood era. Interestingly, these creatures are identical to present-day forms.

Recolonization

After the Flood, recolonization would have begun. There is evidence of ecological succession in the fossil record of this time. Also, we can deduce that the conditions were considerably warmer than those of today, by the numerous temperate-adapted fossil plants and animals found in regions that today are climatically unsuitable for their existence.

Recolonization of the new earth would have had to be consistent with current concepts of ecological succession. There is evidence of succession in the youngest geological layers. Even distribution patterns of animals suggest colonization patterns consistent with a Biblical perspective. For example, genetic studies have shown that colonization routes in Africa were in a north-south direction, and in Asia and into the Americas in a west-east direction.

Once recolonization had largely been completed, ecological barriers caused by desertification, mountain formation, or climatic changes could have separated populations. An example could be the African and Indian elephant populations, which are probably relics of a larger population with its origin midway between the two—a scenario to be expected in the catastrophic model. In view of humankind's great generation length, humans would have been the last organism to spread across the new world.

Did Humans Evolve?

The evidence for the evolution of humans is extremely scant, and as more information becomes available, more and more intermediate forms are removed from the family tree. Interestingly, there has been an ongoing debate about the origin of humans. Did we originate in Africa or Asia? Protagonists of the two viewpoints have been at loggerheads since the first fossils of so-called human ancestors were discovered on the two continents.

In recent times, the theory that humans evolved in Africa held sway, but recent evidence again supported the view that humans evolved in Asia. The compromise viewpoint that humans appeared almost simultaneously in both regions is even more surprising. Again, it can be argued that the data is consistent with a distribution from an area midway between the two disputed regions, making the story of Noah's ark even more plausible. Read more about the theory of human evolution

Volcanoes and Glaciation

After the reoccupation of the post-catastrophic world, the earth experienced a further cycle of catastrophism. Evidence for this can be seen in the vast volcanic deposits present in the youngest layers of the geological column. Volcanism of this scale was probably unleashed when the super-continent Pangaea split up to form the present-day continents. It is estimated that 50,000 volcanoes (the mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Pacific ring of fire) were active at this time.

The volcanoes spewed vast amounts of volcanic ash into the air, thus blocking some of the sun's heat and causing a rapid drop in temperature. Even relatively minor present-day volcanoes influence global weather patterns after eruption. The combination of warm oceans and sudden drop in radiant energy is ideal for the formation of glaciers, as it can provide the necessary sustainable precipitation to allow glacial advance. This would have induced the ice age.

Studies at the Athabasca glacier and glacial bed F26 show that complete glaciation and deglaciation need not have taken more than 600 years. Moreover, evidence for more than one ice age is scant. The glaciers would have separated populations such as the woolly mammoth into a northern and southern population, but conditions must still have been relatively warm in coastal areas, as evidenced by coexistence of animals adapted to different climatic conditions. An example would be hippopotami and reindeer coexisting in England at that time, as evidenced from the fossil record.

Ancient Mammals

The mammals of the Cenozoic layers are often depicted as bizarre and very different to what exists today. Common illustrations are the sabre-toothed tiger, the giant land sloth, and the woolly mammoth. A feature of these animals is their size and diversity. Obviously, in a post-catastrophic world with low population densities, the potential for variation would have been great until increase in population density increased the selective pressures and weeded out the extremes of the range. The assumption that these large mammals existed very long ago and must have represented ancient ancestral forms of modern mammals is not consistent with the facts.

In Siberia, woolly mammoths are found in the ice in such a state of preservation that the flesh is intact. They must have been buried and frozen instantly because such large animals have large heat stores and would have rotted.

In South America pelts have been found of giant sloths indicating a very recent existence. Today we know that reduction in size need not take millions of years, but can be achieved rapidly by increases in competition or changes in climate. Animals on islands frequently undergo large scale reduction in size within the space of a few generations.

Read about natural selection. Updated January 2009.