Peppered Moths
- Before the Industrial Revolution, the majority of peppered moths were white bodied in Great Britain. Their body color helped them camouflage against light-colored trees. The bark was covered in lichen. There were not as many black-bodied moths because they did not camouflage well in the environment.
- The Industrial Revolution caused widespread pollution and soot. The soot covered tress and killed the lichen. Now the light-colored moths were not easily camouflaged. Instead, the dark-colored moths were hidden when resting on the tree bark.
- After the Industrial Revolution, predators easily spotted the light-colored moths and so white-bodied moths were easy prey. Because the dark-colored moths were camouflaged, they survived and reproduced more black-bodies moths.
Students will continue to identify some changes in genetic traits that have occurred over several generations through natural selection and selective breeding such as the Galapagos Medium Ground Finch (Geospiza fortis) or domestic animals.
