Plants Call in Air Defenses
John 1:14
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
New research shows that, when attacked, many plants make chemicals that will give munching insects a bad case of indigestion. They also seem to warn their neighbors about the attack so that they, too, start up their defenses. Some plants even call in air defenses.
Some plants, when attacked by caterpillars, release a scent that scientists simply describe as “green leaf odors.” These odors attract certain female wasps, who home in on the plant. The wasp will sting the caterpillar, leaving him paralyzed. She then lays her eggs in the pest, who remains paralyzed until the hatching young wasps consume it. That “green leaf odor” is a plant’s way of calling in air defenses. It is communication between plant and insect!
Some evolutionary biologists are upset with the intelligence and design in this arrangement. Plants are supposed to be too simple to communicate. As one evolutionist put it, this is “not a defense against anything,” it “just happens.”
I remember trying that excuse as a child. The cookie jar fell to the floor while I was trying to sneak a cookie. “It just happened,” I said, as if the cookie jar had come alive before my unbelieving eyes and jumped to the floor. My mother reminded me that things don’t “just happen.” And science teaches us that things don’t “just happen.” Not only do we see that God exists, we also see a bit of His love in providing for the plant and His intelligence as the author of communication.
Prayer: Dear Lord, as the eternal Word You were the Instrument through which creation took place. When we ruined ourselves with sin You took upon Yourself the human flesh You had created to save us. Thank You! Amen.
REF: Chen, I. 1990. Pest-eating allies: calling up the reserves. Science News, v. 138, Dec. 22 & 29. p. 410.
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