The Flying Frog is another example of the futile thinking behind “evolution”. This astonishing creature shouts “design” for even the most stubborn to comprehend – they are truly without excuse! Romans 1:20.

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Chugley

The magnificent ‘flying’ frog

by Don Batten

We know of flying insects, birds, mammals, and reptiles. But how about a flying frog?

The most famous is ‘Wallace’s Flying Frog’ (Rhacophorus nigropalmatus).¹ The 44 species of the genus Rhacophorus exist widely in sub-Saharan Africa and southeast Asia, from India to the Philippines.² They belong to a family of African-Asian shrub or tree frogs, Rachophoridae, which has over 400 species in 21 genera.³

The family Hylidae, another family of tree frogs that includes the common Australian green tree frog (Litoria caerulea), also has some flying species. One such species has been reported from Central America.⁴

There are said to be over 380 species of flying frogs.⁵God created these tree-dwelling frogs with built-in genetic ability that would enable adaptation to a range of environments in the post-Fall world.

Wallace’s frog is strikingly beautiful in appearance (see picture), and large for a tree frog, growing to 10 cm (4 in.) in length. It favours living in the middle levels of a rainforest canopy and only comes down to mate and lay eggs. These are placed in a bubble or foam nest suspended above a water hole. After the eggs hatch, the tadpoles drop into the pool below to develop.

While called ‘flying frogs’, they don’t really fly, but glide; defined as a descent angle of less than 45º (1:1). Such a glide for an aircraft would result in a crash, but the frogs have a light body weight that reduces the forces involved. Wallace’s flying frog can glide up to 15 m (50 ft). They can also manoeuvre to choose a landing spot, such as a pond or a large leaf, which would also reduce the impact forces.

Gliding ability varies. Many other tree frogs ‘parachute’ (defined as a descent angle of more than 45 degrees).

The gliding species all have similar features that facilitate gliding: large toe pads (which also help with climbing in non-flying tree frogs), long toes, webbing between the toes, and skin flaps along the limbs. A long body also helps.⁶ Gliding species with similar features are found in disconnected genera (in different families) in different places. This suggests the likelihood of a genetic ‘switch’ that activates to produce the gliding configuration—see an example in our article on how finch beaks are designed to vary.⁷Natural selection could well be acting to fine-tune the inbuilt variety present in frogs from their creation.

Thus, God created these tree-dwelling frogs with built-in genetic ability that would enable adaptation to a range of environments in the post-Fall world. This is testimony to the foresight of the Creator in the way that they were programmed (intelligently designed).

Tree frogs are ‘jumpy’. They will jump out of the way of would-be threats. It’s better to jump, albeit a bit risky, than be eaten! They naturally ‘spreadeagle’ their legs, as cats do when they jump from a height, to slow their descent and to reach out for a branch to grab onto.

With the created capacity for a variety of body forms, we can see how different ‘species’ diversified following the original creation of the tree frogs.

There would be environmental niches where a longer glide would be advantageous. For example, tree-climbing snakes eat tree frogs, so an efficient escape plan to move well out of reach would help survival. This would help ensure that the genes (alleles) for those features that enable gliding would be passed on to the next generation.

Thus natural selection could well be acting to fine-tune the inbuilt variety present in frogs from their creation.

The amazing diversity in living things, seen in these beautiful frogs, speaks volumes for the creativity of God and brings glory to His name.

DR DON BATTEN

Ph.D. In Plant Science, Creationist Agricultural Scientist, Senior Scientist, CMI-Australia

Biography

I was born and raised in a rural area of Australia at a time of great family stability and security—at a time when locks were not necessary and divorce was rare. Almost everyone had two parents caring for them. I have seen the development of the rampant social decay which now afflicts Australia—where it is no longer safe to walk the streets at night or leave your house unlocked and where many children struggle with only one parent to raise them. This social decay accelerated with the introduction of systematic evolutionary indoctrination into school curricula in the 1960s—indoctrination which I received also.

I was converted as a result of a street preacher from the Open Air Campaigners at the young age of 10 years (before the evolutionary indoctrination). As a young Christian in boarding high school I naively thought that ‘science was facts’ and tried to believe in evolution and the Bible by accepting the notion that ‘God used evolution’ , days-are-ages, ‘progressive creation’ , etc. I could never see how the gap theory solved anything, or that it had any basis in the Bible. However, I really chose not to think about ‘science’ and the Bible because I guess I knew that evolution did not go with the Bible at all. I arrived at University with this attitude.

As an off-the-cuff remark a Professor of Zoology said in a lecture ‘Some of you are worried about this evolution stuff. Don’t worry too much about it, I don’t know whether I believe it myself.’ Something ‘clicked’ with me when he said this—I came to see, after considerable prayer and study, that evolution is really a belief system parading as science. It is an alternative religion designed to banish the creator God to the realm of abstract philosophy only (contrary to Romans 1:20 ). In the end I came to see the importance of the written Word of God. I had an unforgettable experience of being confronted with the challenge, almost like an audible voice from Heaven, ‘Are you going to believe My Word, or the words of men?’ In tears, on my knees, I confessed my unbelief and asked for forgiveness. My life has never been the same since. It was like being born again—again!

Since then I have endeavoured to understand the Bible and to defend it from all who would attack it. I have seen many lives turned around, friends converted, and Christians on fire for the Lord, through the creation message. That is why I am now working to spread the Gospel-creation message with my colleagues and friends at CMI.

I am happily married to Lesley and blessed with three grown children who love the Lord.

Research fields

Plant science and agricultural climatology. Environmental adaptation of tropical / subtropical fruit species such as mango, lychee and custard apple ( Annona spp.); floral biology, floral induction; breeding; environmental physiology (water requirements, response to temperature, light), plant taxonomy (especially at the sub-species level), and mineral nutrition. Dr Batten’s research in floral induction of lychee and mango has resulted in a complete overturning of previously accepted thought on this (see Batten and McConchie, 1995), which was a big impediment to scientific progress in the field as well as a cause for economic loss to growers caused by erratic flowering due to inappropriate management of these crops.