Man's Niche - I should have added this here ages ago

Many species in their own way have descended down and have adapted more than needed be to meet the demands of survival in their environments, in other words, they have not only become evolved for their ecological niche, but have become over evolved for their ecological niche. As many speculate, what was man evolved to do? I speculate, what was man over evolved to do to survive in their niche? There are many species with some incredible talents many that seem more than necessary for survival.

For example, many bacteria in bad times or not so favorable living conditions sporeulate giving them a hard protective shell to lay dormant in until conditions improve. A camel's red blood cell unlike ours does not pop in fresh water and they have a clear eyelid to see through and protect their eyes from sand storms. Chameleons can change color at what seems like a moments notice, and most lizards are known for being very quick. A cheetah can run up to speeds of 80 miles an hour, still incredible to me even if it is for a short period of time. Eagles can focus on two spots at once, for that matter many birds can fly. Elephants can hear lower pitch sounds. I could go on all day listing different species special talents.

So what is man over evolved to do? Since, I saw a program about man’s evolution to run I have pondered this thought. A lot of species can out run man in a short burst, hear sounds higher and lower, smell better or see in the dark better. Sometimes, it is not so reassuring of our own talents, until we look at things slightly differently.

Even when we are down or old or when we look at our young, there are certain features of the human body that stand out. One of the first things a baby accomplishes in life is the ability to use our incredible opposable thumb. The others come quickly as a child learns to wiggle and move to the major accomplishment of walking. For that matter, just look and man's talents shine through.

We can run for long periods of time, but even so, in many circumstances if man has trouble running or jumping, man can still walk. Our big toes are one of our most unique features that help us keep our balance on our two feet for all sorts of activities and leave our hands free to grab and hang on to things, and even with a missing toe, or a few other injuries, man can still accomplish walking.

Baseball players usually slide on their upper thighs and hips to take the impact. Most women’s hips adjust for childbearing. Our back and legs have been shown to take the impact of walking and the added stress of running, but on the flip side, our back is not so well designed to bend over, and especially, not designed to lift anything heavy in that direction. Many work places of today will emphasize to never lift heavy items with your back.

So why not try your overly evolved hips, legs, toes and grab with your opposable thumbs, and get out and walk once in a while and appreciate our ability to walk upright with the freedom to carry items with our hands simultaneously or not, and leave our mouths free to communicate, to eat or whatever we can think of to do. Who knows, maybe other species think what we do everyday is incredible.

Originally posted in one of my other blogs Febuary 20, 2006