S8 Ep149: 3/8. Darwin's Finches: The Evolution Myth and the Speed of Adaptation — Steven Moss — Moss corrects widespread misconceptions regarding Darwin's Finches, noting that Charles Darwin collected

3/8. Darwin's Finches: The Evolution Myth and the Speed of Adaptation — Steven Moss — Moss corrects widespread misconceptions regarding Darwin's Finches, noting that Charles Darwin collected the specimens but failed to properly label their specific island origins, and subsequently employed pigeons rather than finches to explain evolutionary mechanisms. Moss discusses researchers Peter and Rosemary Grant, who demonstrated that evolutionary adaptation can occur with extraordinary rapidity, occurring within single El Niño weather events. Moss explores Australian birds, including the Magpie, as examples of misnamed convergent evolution. Moss emphasizes that all bird species, including the frequently underestimated pigeon, possess sophisticated cognitive and intelligence capabilities. 1862