experiments, particularly by Bernard Kettlewell, established that the agent of selection was birds who preyed on the carbonaria morph. Subsequent experiments and observations have supported the initial evolutionary explanation of the phenomenon. Genetic basis of melanism The evolution of the industrial melanism mutation has been shown to be due to the insertion of a transposable element into the first intron of the cortex gene, resulting in an increase in the abundance of the cortex transcript, which is expressed in developing wings. Gallery References External links Bruce Grant has written several papers on melanism in the peppered moth which are listed on his home page. Online lecture: "The rise and fall of the melanic Peppered Moth" presented by Laurence Cook. The Peppered Moth: Decline of a Darwinian Disciple. This is the transcript of Michael Majerus' lecture delivered to the British Humanist Association on Darwin Day 2004. The Peppered Moth: The Proof of Darwinian Evolution. This is the transcript of Majerus' lecture given at the European Society for Evolutionary Biology meeting on 23 August 2007. The accompanying Microsoft PowerPoint presentation is also available as a pdf file. An interactive game to simulate how evolution works with Biston betularia Wing vein patterns; this information is found in iNaturalist.org at Wiki - American Peppered Moths. Moths described in 1758 Moths of Asia Moths of Europe Moths of North America Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus