peppered moth

British  

noun

1. a European geometrid moth, Biston betularia, occurring in a pale grey speckled form in rural areas and a black form in industrial regions See also melanism

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Example Sentences

A classic example often taught in high school biology classes is that of industrial melanism in the peppered moth, a British species tha looks, well, "peppered," with black dots on a mostly white background.

From Salon • Jun. 15, 2025

A classic example of this type of selection is the evolution of the peppered moth in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century England.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Probably the best-known example of urban evolution is the English peppered moth whose coloration darkened in the 19th century in response to coal pollution.

From Scientific American • Mar. 25, 2022

The story of the peppered moth is a classic example of evolution in action, right up there with Darwin’s finches.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 1, 2016

As tree trunks grew progressively blacker, however, it became easier for birds to see and prey upon the speckled variety of the peppered moth.

From Time Magazine Archive