Ask a Baraminologist: Dinosaurs and Fossils

Our first question comes from Emily, who asks, “What type of dinosaurs were on the ark?”

Great question, Emily. This question is tricky because rigorous baraminology studies to determine the dinosaur kinds have not been done. The few that have been done are preliminary at best and fatally flawed at worst due to some problems with the way they were performed. However, early estimations are between seventy and ninety kinds of dinosaurs, including ones with which we are all familiar, like the T. rex, the Stegosaur kind, and the Ceratops kind, among many others. This number may drop as we get better data and better baraminology methods.

The Creation Museum houses a world-class allosaur skeleton.

Our second question comes from Graciella, who asks, “We find lots and lots of animal fossils as a result of Noah's flood. But have we found any human fossils that are obviously (or at least potentially) victims of this catastrophe as well?”

This is an excellent question! We actually have an in-depth article on this topic on the main website titled “Where are all the pre-flood human fossils?” that answers this question.1 Most of what I will say here is drawn from that article.

To properly understand why we find so few, if any, pre-flood human skeletons, it is important to understand the flood itself. The flood was caused by more than just the 40 days of rain; the fountains of the deep also exploded open, flinging scalding hot water into the atmosphere and causing rampant earthquakes, volcanism, and massive tsunamis. These catastrophes would have been exponentially worse than what we see today.

Humans tend to do better at surviving catastrophes than most animals, so humans likely lasted longer in the flood than the more common fossils we see, such as shellfish and other invertebrates. Therefore, they would have initially been buried in the uppermost layers of flood sediments. These layers may have been eroded away completely by run-off in the post-flood era. Alternatively, they may have survived long enough not to be buried at all and simply drowned, becoming food for the numerous large sea predators of the time. Fossilization requires rapid burial in most cases, so even if a few scattered bodies had washed up on post-flood beaches, they would have deteriorated quickly and were unlikely to be fossilized. If you want to read up on this issue in more detail, I highly recommend asking your parents about the article listed above. I think it would be very helpful for you.

Our third question comes from Renae, who asks, “Did dragons really live in the time of knights?”

Renae, this is a good thinking question. It’s important to define our terms here. The word “dragon” today tends to be used for mythical beasts with scales that fly and breathe fire. However, before the word “dinosaur” was invented in 1841 by Sir Richard Owen, “dragon” was a common word used for any large reptile. So when you ask if dragons lived with knights, you’re really asking if any uncommonly large reptiles lived with knights. And the answer is, yes, they did! There are several historical accounts of knights or people living in the time of knights battling creatures that resemble dinosaurs or other large reptiles. The most well-known is that of St. George and the dragon, but others, like Beowulf and Regulus, are recorded. An English churchman has two long-necked dinosaurs on his tombstone as late as 1496. And if we want to be technical, since the word “dragon” refers to any uncommonly large reptile, dragons still exist today. The saltwater crocodile of Australia can reach over twenty feet in length when fully grown, and many other crocodilians grow quite large as well. Plus, there is a very large monitor lizard (up to 10 feet long) called the Komodo Dragon, which still exists on some Indonesian islands.

Our fourth and final question comes from Elana, who asks, “Could the Loch Ness Monster be a dinosaur?”

Great question, Elana. Technically, even if the Loch Ness Monster turned out to be real, it would not be a dinosaur. Dinosaurs are only land-dwelling animals. The Loch Ness Monster would most likely be a plesiosaur, which, while not true dinosaurs, are often lumped in with dinosaurs in popular culture. I will caution you, though, that while there are occasional reports of a sighting, the Loch Ness Monster may not be real. Right now, the evidence is somewhat weak. It seems doubtful that even a small population could survive in a lake for a long time. I personally would love for the stories to be true, but I am waiting on more evidence before I commit one way or the other.

Hopefully, these answers have helped you and blessed you. Make sure you join us again next week; I will be answering a couple more questions from other kids just like you! If you have a question, ask your parents to help you submit it here.