Is “Heron-Like, Fish-Eating Dinosaur” . . . a Dinosaur?

The popular headline announcing this find declares, “Heron-Like, Fish-Eating Dinosaur from 70 Million Years Ago Discovered in Argentina.” What exactly does “heron-like” mean? According to the article, it means,

The cervical vertebrae of Kank show special structures for muscle attachment and the protection of neck blood vessels—features particularly important in modern birds with complex neck movements, such as herons. . . .

Their elongated snouts, numerous teeth and long, flexible necks suggest adaptations for fishing, similar to modern herons.

“Heron-like” sounds like it’s, well, like a heron! But in the evolutionary worldview, birds are dinosaurs, so this creature gets introduced to the world as a new dinosaur species, instead of as a new variety of heron-like bird.

This find highlights the role evolutionary assumptions play in interpreting the past. The researchers found a small assemblage of fossil bones—a neck vertebra, a claw, and some teeth (they were all found in the same area and it’s assumed they belong together)—and then they used their evolutionary worldview (belief) to assign a date (70 million years) and a classification (a type of dinosaur). But just because a bird has teeth doesn't make it a dinosaur—we know that at least some ancient birds had teeth, including Archaeopteryx and Microraptor. Because of their evolutionary assumptions, they don’t see birdlike features and assume bird, they see birdlike features and assume dinosaur. It’s all about worldview! It’s ridiculous.

In a biblical worldview, when we see bird features in a fossil, we assume that the creature was probably a bird!

In a biblical worldview, when we see bird features in a fossil, we assume that the creature was probably a bird! God created the various bird kinds on day five but the land creature kinds—including dinosaurs—on day six of creation week, and he made life to reproduce according to its kind, so one kind (like a dinosaur) won’t turn into another kind (like a bird). Rather, birds are birds and dinosaurs are dinosaurs!

When you see headlines declaring a “birdlike” dinosaur has been discovered, go past the headline and take a look at what was actually discovered. Most likely, that “birdlike” dinosaur was probably a bird! Bottom line, they found a fossil bird!

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.