Amongst the hundreds of billions of galaxies that constitute this enigmatic Universe, there lies a splendid star system in the midst of nowhere significant; a remarkable ivory whorl of glimmering celestial bodies. Hovering on one of its numerous prodigiously glorious arms is one of the myriads of stars. This celestial body is just like the untold number of others that drift along this majestic galaxy, except for one feature that makes it so remarkably precious. Its gravitational field has allured in a subtle azure planet that is brimming with something that the rest of the cosmos is starved of : Life.
Amongst this cosmologically bijou planet there resides a species with enigmatic organs of thought. Billions of years of evolution from the very initial single-celled organisms, nature eventually developed a variety of beings capable of distinctive sensations, reasoning and complex mentality. Somewhere along the unfolding of life forms on this planet, a series of neurons in a mysterious pattern ejected off and they began to feel aware. Eventually, These living creatures (better known as the Homo sapiens) began to feel occasional signs of consciousness. Out of the hundreds of millions of life forms that wandered on this peculiar planet, it was only the homo sapiens that gained the capacity to not only ruminate on their surroundings but also about themselves. They called their home Earth.
Being at the most ideal distance from its star has allowed the simplest forms of live to develop into the most phenomenal numbers and complexities, whilst ensuring its efficiency. At this very instant, there reside about 9 million varieties of lifeforms on this planet, each in multitudinous amounts and idiosyncratic characteristics. Yet, these species are a mere ten percent of the quantity that has ever lived on earth. Series of mass extinctions and other occurrences has meant that over 90 percent of the varieties of living creatures on this planet are extinct. Nevertheless, its wondrous natural world had its way and life prevailed in the most marvelous and mystifying manners. As it happens, there are untold exemplifications but we shall brush upon several.
Perhaps the most captivating of all are the majestic oceans that swathe over two thirds of the surface of this planet. It was here where the most primitive forms of live came into being and it is within its untold depths that lays as many startling features as that of the universe.
Lets begin with the so-called Stonefish, a twelve-inch rigid and craggy creature with menacing razor-sharp spines aligning along its back. The lethal toxin stored within its sharpened spine makes this creature perhaps the most venomous fish on Earth.
Then we have the savagely eerie anglerfish, of which there are roughly 250 species. Other than their countless honed gleaming tusks, their most distinctive feature is a narrow extended and sometimes glowing lure, which draws in its prey.
The puffer fish are slothful swimmers and an effortless target for predators. Nonetheless, they have developed a peculiar method to fill their predators with fear. They have the capability to inflate their oblong-shaped anatomy with either water or air, rounding into about twice their genuine size and become too much of a mouthful to their predators!
It gets even more baffling. There are the ghostly Hatchetfish, and their horrified countenances. Then there is the Yeti Crab and its fleecy fuzzy and furry limbs. And let us not forget the utterly outlandish blobfish and its queer human-like expression. Then comes the petrifying Dracula fish, The ornate red lion fish, the splendidly ornamented psychedelic frogfish, the vividly pink cyanide millpipe, the marvelous photosynthetic sea slug and the breathtaking Macropinna Microstoma with its transparent head.
In spite of so, there still remains hundreds of thousands of distinctive and equally mesmerizing species. And let us not fail to recall that all this merely within the waters of the planet. Life on land is as equally diverse and notable as that of in the oceans. What is even more astonishing is the relationship all the innumerable living beings have with one another and their surroundings. Life on this planetary body is an elaborate system in which every individual creature is dependant on another creature or on a certain aspect of their surroundings.
But how, one may ask, did all this unnumbered abundance of life come into being at such staggering diversity? The answer is fairly simple: Evolution. A cogent hypothesis first suggested by the eminent Charles Darwin, the theory of evolution is one of the most significant aspects of modern-day biology for it unites genetics, microbiology and paleontology.
There are two main aspects of evolution that one must grasp before going into depth. The first is that all of the eight million (and counting) species on earth and distantly related to one another and share a common ancestor in the prehistoric past. In other terms, all forms of life on this planet are a part of a staggering tree of life.
As a certain individual species strive to sustain themselves via limited recourses, some may have minor heritable differences that gives them a much more advantageous way of surviving. These beings, in procession of a distinct characteristic, then live long enough to reproduce (As opposed to those who lacked the beneficial variation) and increase in number whilst passing on the heritable difference that benefited them in the first place. Their population then increases in number as their offspring survive. As time flows away, advantageous characteristics become typical, as harmful traits are eradiated due to the fact that individuals that possess them are much less likely to get the opportunity to breed.
The second most significant argument that evolution makes is that throughout eons, the process of gradual evolutionary change, which is known as Anagenesis, can cause one species to evolve into another or even branch off one species into diverging types.
The former method occurs when a geographical variation, such as the splitting of plate tectonics or a river changing a course, separates the species into two in terms of population. The two groups then wander away from each other into contrastive environments and adapt to disparate circumstances. Being reproductively isolated, They evolve separately and over a few hundreds of years their characteristics vary enough to classify them as two distinct species for they fail to produce offspring with one another. This happens over and over again to bring about the mind-blowing diversity witnessed today.
Throughout eons, the noteworthy life on earth has persistently been threatened mass extinctions. Yet, nature being as baffling as it is, got back to its feet and bounced back with new life forms adapting, no matter how harsh its vicinity.
Amongst this still deserted region of the galaxy, one can observe a faded blue planetoid soaring around a fiery orange sun, occupied by life of all enthralling and mystifying forms. For what we know, the rest of the universe looks upon this minute speck of dust with envy.
