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Industrial melanism in the peppered moth was an early test of Charles Darwin's natural selection in action, and it remains a classic example in the teaching of evolution. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] In 1978, Sewall Wright described it as "the clearest case in which a conspicuous evolutionary process has actually been observed."
Peppered moth, carbonaria type on the left, and typica on the right Kettlewell's experiment was a biological experiment in the mid-1950s to study the evolutionary mechanism of industrial melanism in the peppered moth (Biston betularia).
Industrial melanism is known from over 70 species of moth that Kettlewell found in England, and many others from Europe and North America. [17] Among these, Apamea crenata (clouded border brindle moth) and Acronicta rumicis (knot grass moth) are always polymorphic, though the melanic forms are more common in cities and (like those of the peppered moth) are declining in frequency as those ...
The peppered moth (Biston betularia) is a temperate species of night-flying moth. [1] It is mostly found in the northern hemisphere in places like Asia, Europe and North America. Peppered moth evolution is an example of population genetics and natural selection. [2] The caterpillars of the peppered moth not only mimic the form but also the ...
Henry Bernard Davis Kettlewell (24 February 1907 – 11 May 1979) [1] was a British geneticist, lepidopterist and medical doctor, who performed research on the influence of industrial melanism on peppered moth (Biston betularia) coloration, showing why moths are darker in polluted areas.
The Evolution of Melanism: a study of recurring necessity; with special reference to industrial melanism in the Lepidoptera is a 1973 science book by the lepidopterist Bernard Kettlewell. The book includes Kettlewell's original papers in the journal Heredity on his classic predation experiments on the peppered moth .
Industrial melanism is an evolutionary effect in insects such as the peppered moth, Biston betularia in areas subject to industrial pollution. Darker pigmented individuals are favored by natural selection, apparently because they are better camouflaged against polluted backgrounds. When pollution was later reduced, lighter forms regained the ...
[36] [37] Majerus's works clearly vindicated the experiments on peppered moth evolution, and the paper concluded that: The new data, coupled with the weight of previously existing data convincingly show that 'industrial melanism in the peppered moth is still one of the clearest and most easily understood examples of Darwinian evolution in action'.