As a matter of fact, it is well known by paleontologists that literally all phyla, classes, orders, and families of plants and animals have arisen suddenly without obvious transitional ancestors, as far as the fossil record shows. A very interesting and cogent comment about Gould has appeared recently. Even his critics grant that Dr. Gould is popular with lay readers, but this has also made him a favorite target of attack. 8 Let's stay united against the creationists, they say, no matter how we argue among ourselves, and no matter how flimsy is our evidence for evolution. Dr. Thomson courageously has recently tried to define just what they should look for that could constitute genuine evidence of evolution.
Mutations take place, but they are either reversible, deteriorative, or neutral.
Natural selection takes place, but this is a conservative phenomenon, which weeds out defective mutants and keeps the population stable. Adaptations take place, but these are horizontal changes which conserve the species against extinction, but do not produce new species. Somewhere, someone may find real empirical proof of evolution. One of their own has said it well. So if we want to compare science and religion fairly and objectively, let us not compare science the fantasized ideal to religion in human reality but, rather, science in human reality to religion in human reality.