Transitional fossils

See also

Fossil record

Intermediate forms (living)

'Kinds'. including hyperevolution within 'kinds'

Punctuated equilibrium

Also see various other topics within the Palaeontology section that deal with specific groups and transitions, for example Birds and close ancestors (Avialae) and Emergence of mammals

Resources

Claim CC200: Transitional fossils are lacking

Claim CC200.1: There should be billions of transitional fossils

Claim CC202. Transitional fossils do not show direct ancestry

Claim CC211: There are gaps between invertebrates and vertebrates

Claim CC212: There are gaps between fish and amphibians

Claim CC213: There are gaps between amphibians and reptiles

Claim CC214: There are gaps between reptiles and birds

Claim CC214.1: Archaeopteryx was probably not an ancestor of modern birds

Claim CC214.1.1: Archaeopteryx is fully bird

Claim CC214.2: Duck-billed dinosaur find disproves its bird ancestry

Claim CC215: There are gaps between reptiles and mammals

Claim CC216.1: There are gaps between land mammals and whales

Claim CC216.2: Horse fossils do not show evolution

Claim CC220: Arthropods arose suddenly

Claim CC220.1: There are no fossil ancestors of insects

Claim CC250: There are no fossil ancestors of plants

Claim CC251: Progymnosperms are imaginary evolutionary ancestors

Brief responses in the Index to Creationist Claims in the TalkOrigins Archive.

Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why it Matters

Book by Donald R. Prothero.

This is probably the best resource available on this subject. Prothero gives detailed (but understandable to a general audience) examples of fossils that demonstrate the major transitions, including those linking the major phyla. He also points out errors in creationist thinking and creationist tricks such as being shown a fossil intermediate and then pointing out that there are now two more gaps that ‘need to be filled’. Includes a brilliant chapter on the possibilities of abiogenesis. Also includes a chapter on Flood geology and creationist misunderstandings of mainstream geology.

Note: Creationists have criticized this book by picking out a couple of parts and claiming they're wrong (whilst ignoring the huge amount of evidence of transitional forms that the book is mostly about). Nick Matzke has written a response to this criticism.

List of transitional fossils

Wikipedia article with a partial(!) list of the fossils we know so far that could be considered 'transitional'.

List of transitional forms

Article on RationalWiki with a partial(!) list of the fossils we know so far that could be considered 'transitional'.

Transitional Vertebrate Fossils FAQ

Multi-part article by Kathleen Hunt in the TalkOrigins Archive, dealing just with vertebrate fossils. The list is also old and more have been found since.

The Dilemma of the Horned Dinosaurs

Article by Frederick Edwords in the journal Creation/Evolution on the website of the National Center for Science Education. The bibliography is missing from this version but is available in the PDF format of the issue in which this article appears.

NH Notes: A Four-legged Snake – Has the Edenic Serpent been Found?

Post by Joel Duff on his Naturalis Historia blog.

Basic Created Kinds and the Fossil Record of Perissodactyls

Article by James S. Monroe in the journal Creation/Evolution on the website of the National Center for Science Education. The bibliography is missing from this version but is available in the PDF format of the issue in which this article appears.

Transitional hominins and creationists – Misguided Mondays

Creation.com explains away mosaic fossils with lies

Posts by Adam Benton on his Filthy Monkey Men blog.

Invoking Super-Speed Evolution: The YEC Post-Flood Big Bang of Bird Speciation

Post by biologist Joel Duff on his Naturalis Historia blog. Includes discussion of transitional fossils and contradictions in creationist claims about them.