How Did the Kangaroo Reach Australia?

Ethan asks: "1. It is known that continents like Australia and Antarctica are separated from other continents and surrounded by oceans. The Torah tells us that Noah's Ark landed on the mountains of Ararat in Turkey. So how did the kangaroo reach Australia and the penguin reach Antarctica from there? And how did they know where to migrate?

2. Also, in your article in Hidabrot ("Questions and Answers on Noah's Ark and the Flood") you wrote that Noah brought only the roots of the species into the ark, and the animals then diversified into different species after the Flood. But I read that there are currently over 8 million species of animals in the world, and such processes take a very long time. How is this possible? Thank you."

* * *

Hello Ethan, and thank you for your questions.

First, I will mention the scientific evidence for the Flood:

- Observations of Earth's surface indicate massive natural disasters in its past. Material findings show a sudden mass extinction of millions of animals, as well as the creation of immense canyons and chasms during this catastrophe.

- Seashells and fish skeletons are found all over the world, even on the peaks of the Himalayas and Mount Everest, in deserts and snow. This is evidence that the sea indeed covered the continents and wiped out the animals in its path.

- Human history also testifies to the Flood. It turns out that all cultures around the world, even the most distant from each other, tell ancient stories about Noah's Ark and the Flood, despite having no cultural connection. It is also interesting to note that all recorded and documented human history of the world's cultures goes back only 4300 years, no more. During this period, empires and states first appeared, along with books and writings, and there are no dynasties or history books from before that time.

- And of course, the greatest evidence is known from the truth of our holy Torah, which is based on the divine revelation to all of Israel. We wholeheartedly trust the faithful historical record that Hashem revealed to us about the beginnings of humanity and the Flood.

Now to your questions:

1. Our world is comprised of several plates that hold the oceans and continents, known as "tectonic plates." These plates are constantly moving slowly, causing the continents to drift apart over thousands of years, a process called "continental drift," which continues to this day. A sudden movement of the plates can cause earthquakes and deadly tsunamis. The movement of the plates can be slow or sudden, as per the decision of the Creator, blessed be He.

The Torah tells us that during the Flood "all the fountains of the great deep were split" (Genesis 7:11), which can be understood as a splitting of the tectonic plates beneath the sea, explaining two phenomena: the process of continental drift from an original single landmass, and the creation of the Flood from giant tsunamis that covered all continents for a whole year, until the waters returned to the sea: "The waters receded from the earth, going back and forth, and diminished after a hundred and fifty days" (Genesis 8:3).

The continents separated, meaning in the past they were closer - allowing continuous passage between them. Historical evidence is found in the fact that the Native Americans arrived in America without ships; they walked. In the past, Australia was closer to Indonesia and the continent of Asia, allowing humans to migrate on foot to Australia (the Australian natives). Humans walked, and like them, animals migrated after the Flood to various continents that were still connected in some parts.

Even today, one can see on maps the pathways that allowed passage between the continents. All researchers agree that humans reached different continents on foot using these paths. But since then, the continents continued to split over the next 4000 years. The very fact that we see narrow passages today proves that in the past, these paths were larger, and the continents were closer. The major continental split likely occurred during the Flood, when all the fountains of the great deep were split, and the tectonic plates moved suddenly; since then and to this day, the continents continue to move apart. The Zohar states: "The waters brought forth one land, and from it emerged seven lands as we said" (Zohar Hadash, Volume 1, Parashat Bereshit, Page 21).

Since the world is round, it can be shown how the continents allowed continuous passage among them. For example, by looking closely at the world map, we see that from the continent of Asia (on the right side of the map), one can go up to Siberia in Russia, and from there continue in a straight line to Alaska (on the left side of the map. It is hard to believe that all that currently separates Russia from Alaska is only 55 miles of sea). From Alaska continue to Canada and go down to America. Thus, it was possible in the past to reach America from Asia on foot!

Similarly, one could descend from China to the Indian Islands, and from the Indian Islands to New Guinea, and from there to the continent of Australia.

In Antarctica, no humans have ever settled, but there are penguins and other sea animals. There are still remnants of continuous islands from the southernmost part of South America to the South Shetland Islands in Antarctica [the penguins' route would look like this: Tierra del Fuego -> South Georgia Islands -> South Sandwich Islands -> South Orkney Islands -> South Shetland Islands -> Antarctica]. The gap between the islands is not large, and penguins can make it by swimming. Emperor penguins have been observed swimming more than a thousand miles over a month (about 40 miles a day). Adelie penguins have been observed swimming about 3000 miles. Furthermore, the passage between continents was larger in the past, easing their migration among the islands. Once again, we see how science fully aligns with the Torah.

Just as the animals came to the ark, so they migrated from the ark to suitable habitats. The migration process can be explained as an instinct imbued by the Creator in all animals, who migrate until they find the best habitat for them (e.g., bears continued to migrate to North America, becoming grizzly bears, while some bears kept migrating to the North Pole, becoming polar bears). Camels, on the other hand, migrated to warmer regions suitable for their survival. The migration did not have to happen in one year; it could have taken hundreds of years.

2. As explained in my article, the divergence of different species (or kinds) of animals is not considered "evolution," as they utilize an existing gene pool (for example, your gene pool contains the potential to be black-skinned African or white-skinned European). The gray wolf holds the genes for all types of dogs. Species split at an astounding rate, even today. Just look at the hundreds of dog breeds created in the last two hundred years. 4000 years is long enough to produce tens of thousands of new species in different climates around Earth. Different living environments require rapid adaptation (the same rapid process observed in dogs can occur in nature when climate demands it). Artificial selection is genetically the same as natural selection in the wild. We constantly discover new species of butterflies and animals in nature, created by migrating to new climates and different survival demands. Differences among humans (Africans, Asians, Europeans, etc.) also emerged in the last thousands of years. Noah could take only the roots of the species into the ark, and after leaving the ark, they diversified into all the species we see today in nature.

You mentioned 8 million types of animals, but actually, all millions of species in nature are insects, plants, and tiny bacteria - which indeed change and adapt to new living environments in the shortest time. On the contrary, there are only 5500 species of mammals worldwide; 6000 different reptile species; 6000 amphibian species; and 10,000 bird species.

Across the globe, there are no more than 35 different animal classes (Phylum), and no more than 1000 different animal families (e.g., arachnids are a family unto themselves, including all types of spiders; canines are a family that includes all types of dogs). This means Noah needed to bring between 1000 and 2000 creatures into the ark, a number no larger than an average zoo today (and by the highest estimates, it is said that 16,000 animals entered the ark, considering most of the world's animals are small). Thus, there were more than enough "roots of species" in the ark to account for the diverse animal life observed today in nature.