Recent Fossil Finds Darwin also struggled with what he called the “imperfection of the geological record.” Darwin's study of fossils had convinced him and other scientists that life evolved. But paleontologists in 1859 hadn't found enough fossils of intermediate forms of life to document the evolution of modern species from their ancestors. 
Many recently discovered fossils form series that trace the evolution of modern species from extinct ancestors.
Since Darwin, paleontologists have discovered hundreds of fossils that document intermediate stages in the evolution of many different groups of modern species. One recently discovered fossil series documents the evolution of whales from ancient land mammals, as shown in Figure 16–13. Other recent fossil finds connect the dots between dinosaurs and birds, and between fish and four-legged land animals. In fact, so many intermediate forms have been found that it is often hard to tell where one group begins and another ends. All historical records are incomplete, and the history of life is no exception. The evidence we do have, however, tells an unmistakable story of evolutionary change.
Fossil of the Eocene whale Ambulocetus natans (about 49 million years old)
Table of Contents
- Formulas and Equations
- Applying Formulas and Equations
- Mean, Median, and Mode
- Estimation
- Using Measurements in Calculations
- Effects of Measurement Errors
- Accuracy
- Precision
- Comparing Accuracy and Precision
- Significant Figures
- Calculating With Significant Figures
- Scientific Notation
- Calculating With Scientific Notation
- Dimensional Analysis
- Applying Dimensional Analysis