Peppered Moth Simulation
Read the background information and answer the questions as you go.
Life Cycle of the Peppered Moth
1. Why are these moths called "peppered moths?"
Their light wings are "peppered" with small dark spots
2. What animals eat the peppered moth?
Flycatchers, nuthatches, and the European robin
3. What is a lichen?
Small fungi
4. What do the larvae of the moth eat?
Leaves of birch, willow, and oak trees
5. How do peppered moths spend the winter?
They change into pupae (cocoons)
6. Moths that have more dark spots than the average moth are called what?
Insularia
Impact of Pollution
7. Where was the first black form of the moth found?
Near the centre of Manchester
8. What was the Industrial Revolution?
Factories were being built, and they ran by burning coal for fuel
9. What was causing the different colors in the moths?
Some thought adults changed to blend in and others thought it was an effect of the smoke. But the color was genetic.
10. What is natural selection?
All types of living things have small differences between the individuals in the species. If one of those differences allows the individual to live longer, they will have more offspring. As that trait is passed on, the species start to look more like the successful individual. Over time, the species changes.
11. Who suggested that peppered moths were an example of natural selection?
J.W. Tutt
12. What is industrial melanism?
When all living things respond to natural selection
Kettlewell's Experiments
13. What is an entomologist?
A scientist who studies insects
14. How do scientists test theories?
By making predictions based on the theory. Then they test the prediction to see if what they observe matches their expectations
15. Write down ONE of Kettlewell's predictions.
Heavily polluted forests will have mostly dark peppered moths
16. Dark moths were found in what parts of the country?
near the industrial cities producing pollution, and the countryside
17. How did Kettlewell directly study the moths?
He placed light and dark moths on the trunks of trees where he could observe them. He recorded the times a bird found the moth.
18. Why did dark moths have a survival advantage?
They blended in better than light moths so birds couldn't find them
19. When Kettlewell recaptured the marked moths, what did he find?
Only half as many light moths were recaptured in polluted forests. He showed that if the moths color matched the environment, it had a better chance of survival.
20. Where did Kettlewell publish his findings?
in an article in Scientific American
Birdseye View
21. Open the simulation and play the role of the bird in both the dark and the light forest. Try to behave as a bird would behave, choosing the moths that are the most obvious. At the end of each simulation, record the percent of moths captured in the table below.
Now there are only 81% light moths and 19% dark moths
Now there are only 38% white moths and 62% dark moths
Final Analysis
22. Explain how the color of the moths increases or decreases their chances of survival.
It increases their chance of living when they blend in with the environment around them because predators can't see them. However, it can also hurt them to not blend in because they're easier to see and catch.
23. Explain the concept of "natural selection" using your moths as an example.
The organisms that can adapt in order to survive will stay alive. In this case, only the moths that can blend in or change their color to blend in will survive.
24. What would happen if there were no predators in the forest? Would the colors of the moths change over time? Defend your answer?
There wouldn't be a need for the moths to hide, so they would probably go back to their natural colors. They also could become overpopulated.
Life Cycle of the Peppered Moth
1. Why are these moths called "peppered moths?"
Their light wings are "peppered" with small dark spots
2. What animals eat the peppered moth?
Flycatchers, nuthatches, and the European robin
3. What is a lichen?
Small fungi
4. What do the larvae of the moth eat?
Leaves of birch, willow, and oak trees
5. How do peppered moths spend the winter?
They change into pupae (cocoons)
6. Moths that have more dark spots than the average moth are called what?
Insularia
Impact of Pollution
7. Where was the first black form of the moth found?
Near the centre of Manchester
8. What was the Industrial Revolution?
Factories were being built, and they ran by burning coal for fuel
9. What was causing the different colors in the moths?
Some thought adults changed to blend in and others thought it was an effect of the smoke. But the color was genetic.
10. What is natural selection?
All types of living things have small differences between the individuals in the species. If one of those differences allows the individual to live longer, they will have more offspring. As that trait is passed on, the species start to look more like the successful individual. Over time, the species changes.
11. Who suggested that peppered moths were an example of natural selection?
J.W. Tutt
12. What is industrial melanism?
When all living things respond to natural selection
Kettlewell's Experiments
13. What is an entomologist?
A scientist who studies insects
14. How do scientists test theories?
By making predictions based on the theory. Then they test the prediction to see if what they observe matches their expectations
15. Write down ONE of Kettlewell's predictions.
Heavily polluted forests will have mostly dark peppered moths
16. Dark moths were found in what parts of the country?
near the industrial cities producing pollution, and the countryside
17. How did Kettlewell directly study the moths?
He placed light and dark moths on the trunks of trees where he could observe them. He recorded the times a bird found the moth.
18. Why did dark moths have a survival advantage?
They blended in better than light moths so birds couldn't find them
19. When Kettlewell recaptured the marked moths, what did he find?
Only half as many light moths were recaptured in polluted forests. He showed that if the moths color matched the environment, it had a better chance of survival.
20. Where did Kettlewell publish his findings?
in an article in Scientific American
Birdseye View
21. Open the simulation and play the role of the bird in both the dark and the light forest. Try to behave as a bird would behave, choosing the moths that are the most obvious. At the end of each simulation, record the percent of moths captured in the table below.
Now there are only 81% light moths and 19% dark moths
Now there are only 38% white moths and 62% dark moths
Final Analysis
22. Explain how the color of the moths increases or decreases their chances of survival.
It increases their chance of living when they blend in with the environment around them because predators can't see them. However, it can also hurt them to not blend in because they're easier to see and catch.
23. Explain the concept of "natural selection" using your moths as an example.
The organisms that can adapt in order to survive will stay alive. In this case, only the moths that can blend in or change their color to blend in will survive.
24. What would happen if there were no predators in the forest? Would the colors of the moths change over time? Defend your answer?
There wouldn't be a need for the moths to hide, so they would probably go back to their natural colors. They also could become overpopulated.