Before the Industrial Revolution most peppered moths were light, but in polluted areas dark moths became common. This is best explained by

Answer and explanation

Correct answer: A. natural selection favouring dark moths on sooty trees

  1. Step 1: Birds ate light moths more often in polluted areas, so the dark allele became more common.
Answer
natural selection favouring dark moths on sooty trees.
Why not the others: individual moths changing colour to match the sooty trees they rested on: individual moths do not change colour in response to the environment. mutation caused directly by the pollution acting on the moths' genes: mutations are random and the dark allele was already present. dark moths migrating into polluted areas from other regions: the change came from differences in survival, not migration.

Practise more Evolution and natural selection.

Free questions with an explanation for every one, and full timed South Africa Matric mock tests.