Instinct - evolved or better answer?

The bower bird (bowerbird?) does remarkable building.The male builds a "bachelor pad" and decorates it and the surrounding area with brightly colored objects (blue is favored). He buzzes and dances about to attract a female, and if she approves of his bower, she will enter it, and he will get lucky. Then she flies off, builds a nest, and raises the young on her own.The younger males almost never get lucky. Older males may mate with a dozen or more females each season. Younger males will steal another's decorations or demolish their bower, though the older males rarely do. The males are both exacting and idiosyncatic in their bower building, quickly spotting any observer-added material and removing (or relocating) it to their satisfaction. Some of the bowers are quite striking, and no two are exactly alike.This message has been edited by Omnivorous, 11-28-2005 11:35 AM

Just wanted to say thanks, Larni.Some of this material I knew, some I didn't (always appreciated); there are unfamiliar examples here of familiar phenomena, and those are always delectable.Also, I try to read across many fields, and it is always helpful to look closely at some basics that don't show up in more advanced or technical material.i.e.: cool

Hi, Carico. Welcome to EvC.You should learn a little more about evolution; then you wouldn't embarrass your side with misunderstandings and needless hostility--you can disagree without maligning those with whom you disagree. There may be something in the 10 Commandments about that... The particular logical fallacy you commit by way of doing so is called a false dilemma: evolutionsts must be either idiots or liars; they may, in fact, be many other things, including sincerely mistaken or brilliantly right.You may be startled to learn that evolution does not claim that one species gives birth to another; in fact, evolutionists pretty much universally insist quite the opposite. If there is no such thing as evolution, then God created sexually transmitted diseases directly. Who do you suppose He gave syphillis to first, and why? Did the first rape victim who contracted syphillis deserve it?Oh, one other thing: what about the wars that God started in the Old Testament?

Carico, I'm still waiting for answers to the specific questions I asked you in this thread.I see you have repeated your beliefs in other messages since stating them in this one, but you have not responded to any replies.Discussion is a two-way street.