A Child Can See Evolution is False
My parents told me about this when I was 7 years old, and I said this proves the days of Genesis cannot be long periods of time. If the plants were created on the second day, a long period before the moth on the fifth day the yucca would not survive.
The YUCCA
MOTH and the YUCCA PLANT:
The yucca
(Yucca spp.) and the yucca moth (Tegeticula spp.) share a mutually beneficial
relationship, each dependent on the other for survival. The female yucca moth
is the sole pollinator of the yucca, and the yucca is the only caterpillar host
plant of the yucca moth. In fact, the yucca and yucca moth share a symbiotic
relationship that is so specialized, each yucca species is pollinated by only
one type of yucca moth.
Classification and Range
Classification and Range
Yucca moths
are members of the family Prodoxidae and the genus Tegeticula. Of the 80 or so
species found worldwide, about 30 are native to North America. These moths are
typically found wherever yucca plants grow, generally throughout the hot,
desert regions of the southwestern United States and Central and South America.
Members of the Asparagaceae family, the yucca genus contains at least 30
species of trees and shrubs. Yuccas are characterized by their tough,
sword-like leaves and large clusters of fragrant, white flowers. These plants
generally grow in U. S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3
through 10, although hardiness varies by species.
Yucca Moth
Description:
Yucca moths are typically silvery-white and small — usually less than an inch long. Some have dark markings and hair-like fringes on their wings. Their lifespan is about a year, but most of it is spent in the pupal stage. Because the adult stage is very brief, yucca moths do not need to eat; therefore, unlike other moths, they do not have long tongues for sipping nectar. The mouth of the female moth is equipped with special tentacle-like organs, designed for gathering and carrying pollen. Each yucca moth species is highly specialized to pollinate a particular type of yucca. For example, Tegeticula synthetica is the sole pollinator of the Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia), which grows in USDA zones 8 through 10.
Yucca moths are typically silvery-white and small — usually less than an inch long. Some have dark markings and hair-like fringes on their wings. Their lifespan is about a year, but most of it is spent in the pupal stage. Because the adult stage is very brief, yucca moths do not need to eat; therefore, unlike other moths, they do not have long tongues for sipping nectar. The mouth of the female moth is equipped with special tentacle-like organs, designed for gathering and carrying pollen. Each yucca moth species is highly specialized to pollinate a particular type of yucca. For example, Tegeticula synthetica is the sole pollinator of the Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia), which grows in USDA zones 8 through 10.
Pollination:
The yucca plant cannot pollinate itself — it relies on the yucca moth for cross-pollination. After the male and female yucca moths mate in springtime, the female gathers the sticky pollen from the anthers of a yucca flower. Holding the clump of pollen in her tentacles, she flies to another flower, usually on a different plant. She lays her eggs in the flower’s ovary and deposits the pollen onto the stigma, thus fertilizing the flower and ensuring the production of seeds to feed the caterpillars when they hatch.
The yucca plant cannot pollinate itself — it relies on the yucca moth for cross-pollination. After the male and female yucca moths mate in springtime, the female gathers the sticky pollen from the anthers of a yucca flower. Holding the clump of pollen in her tentacles, she flies to another flower, usually on a different plant. She lays her eggs in the flower’s ovary and deposits the pollen onto the stigma, thus fertilizing the flower and ensuring the production of seeds to feed the caterpillars when they hatch.
Moth Life
Cycle:
After the yucca moth lays her eggs, she marks the flower with a pheromone, letting other moths know the flower is “taken.” After about a week, the small, pinkish-red caterpillars hatch inside the ovary and begin eating the immature seeds. Typically, the caterpillars consume only a small portion of the hundreds of seeds produced. When the caterpillars are fully grown, they leave the flower, burrow into the ground and form cocoons. The following spring, adult moths emerge from the cocoons, although some pupae may remain dormant for up to two years.
After the yucca moth lays her eggs, she marks the flower with a pheromone, letting other moths know the flower is “taken.” After about a week, the small, pinkish-red caterpillars hatch inside the ovary and begin eating the immature seeds. Typically, the caterpillars consume only a small portion of the hundreds of seeds produced. When the caterpillars are fully grown, they leave the flower, burrow into the ground and form cocoons. The following spring, adult moths emerge from the cocoons, although some pupae may remain dormant for up to two years.
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