Of Moths and Men: An Evolutionary Tale

peppered-moths.jpg
Peppered moth (Biston betularia) melanic and light form. Moths in the family Geometridae showing relative camouflage of f. cabonaria, the result of industrial melanism
Licensed from Adobe Stock

The Peppered Myth

Open almost any textbook dealing with biological evolution and you’ll probably find photographs of peppered moths resting on tree trunks — illustrating the classic story of natural selection in action. A friend of mine says those photographs are all he remembers about evolution from his undergraduate days. Before the mid-1800s, almost all peppered moths were light-colored, but during the industrial Read More ›