James Donelson, age 11, Silsbee, Texas, for his question:

Was the scorpion the first land animal?

There is every reason to believe that the first animal to come out of the ancient seas and make his home on the dry land was a scorpion. This great event happened about 350 million years ago. Certain plants left the sea and set up housekeeping on the dry land some time before the first scorpions. But for a long time they were the only animals on land.

The next animals to brave the dry land were much, much larger than the scorpions. They were the amphibians. The amphibians were the first backboned animals to leave the sea. But. they never quite managed to tear themselves away from the water. Even today, the amphibians lay their eggs and spend part of their lives in the water. They have been living this double life for at least 300 million years.