in the 1950s, after the industrial revolution, an english physician and lepidopterist (person who studies moths), bernard kettlewell, undertook a study of the relative proportions of the three types of peppered moths in industrial and nonindustrial areas to learn more about why the carbonaria or black form, became much more frequent in industrial areas.

kettlewell’s experiment studied one possible explanation of the change in color frequency of moths: birds preying on the peppered moth as it rested on trees in areas in which a soot layer darkened the trees. kettlewell proposed that the birds would prey upon whichever moth was easiest to spot, and that the change in background color from soot would change the type of moth that was preyed upon most often.

now that you know about the existence of three forms of peppered moth - typica (white), carbonaria (black), and insularia (grey), what hypothesis is likely for kettlewell to have made regarding moths and predation?

select only the best answer.

there is no difference in the peppered moth predation between industrial and non - industrial areas.

the white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas.

the black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas.

the grey form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas.

the percentages will remain stable but the population will grow rapidly in industrial areas.

the percentages will remain stable as the entire population dies out in industrial areas.

Question

in the 1950s, after the industrial revolution, an english physician and lepidopterist (person who studies moths), bernard kettlewell, undertook a study of the relative proportions of the three types of peppered moths in industrial and nonindustrial areas to learn more about why the carbonaria or black form, became much more frequent in industrial areas.

kettlewell’s experiment studied one possible explanation of the change in color frequency of moths: birds preying on the peppered moth as it rested on trees in areas in which a soot layer darkened the trees. kettlewell proposed that the birds would prey upon whichever moth was easiest to spot, and that the change in background color from soot would change the type of moth that was preyed upon most often.

now that you know about the existence of three forms of peppered moth - typica (white), carbonaria (black), and insularia (grey), what hypothesis is likely for kettlewell to have made regarding moths and predation?

select only the best answer.

there is no difference in the peppered moth predation between industrial and non - industrial areas.

the white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas.

the black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas.

the grey form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas.

the percentages will remain stable but the population will grow rapidly in industrial areas.

the percentages will remain stable as the entire population dies out in industrial areas.

Accepted Answer

# Brief Explanations:
Kettlewell's study was about peppered moths in industrial (sooty, dark - colored trees) and non - industrial areas. The key idea is that birds prey on the moths that are easiest to spot. In industrial areas, the trees are darkened by soot. The black (carbonaria) moths would be better camouflaged on these dark trees, so they would be harder for birds to see and thus less likely to be preyed upon. This means that the black form would make up the greatest percentage of the population eaten? Wait, no. Wait, if they are harder to spot, they are less likely to be eaten. Wait, the question is about the percentage of the population eaten. Wait, no, let's re - read. The hypothesis is about moths and predation. In industrial areas, the background is dark (soot). So the black moths blend in, so birds will prey more on the white or grey moths. So the black form will be preyed upon less, meaning that among the moths eaten, the black form will be a smaller percentage? Wait, no, the options are about which form forms the greatest percentage of the population eaten. Wait, maybe I got it wrong. Wait, the industrial areas have dark trees. So the white moths are more visible on dark trees, so birds will eat more white moths. The black moths are less visible, so birds will eat fewer black moths. So among the moths that are eaten, the white form would be more? But that's not one of the options. Wait, no, the options: let's list them again.

Option 1: No difference in predation between industrial and non - industrial. But the study is about why black is more frequent in industrial, so this is wrong.

Option 2: White form greatest percentage eaten in industrial. But in industrial, trees are dark, so white is visible, so birds eat more white. But is this the hypothesis? Wait, Kettlewell's hypothesis was about natural selection - the moths that are better camouflaged (match the tree color) will survive more, so the ones that don't match will be eaten more. In industrial areas, trees are dark, so black moths match, white don't. So white moths are eaten more, so the percentage of white moths eaten would be higher. But wait, the option says "The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas." But another option is "The black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas." Wait, maybe I mixed up. Wait, no - if the black moths are camouflaged, they are less likely to be eaten, so the percentage of black moths in the eaten population would be lower, and white would be higher. But that's not matching the options? Wait, no, maybe the question is phrased as "which form is eaten the most". Wait, let's re - examine the text. The text says "Kettlewell proposed that the birds would prey upon whichever moth was easiest to spot, and that the change in background color from soot would change the type of moth that was preyed upon most often." In industrial areas, the background (trees) is dark (soot). So the white moths are easiest to spot, so birds prey on them most. So the white form would be eaten the most? But the option "The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas" is an option. But wait, another option is "The black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas". Wait, maybe I made a mistake. Wait, no - the black moths are the ones that are more frequent in industrial areas, which means they survive more. So they are preyed upon less. So the ones that are preyed upon more are the white ones. But let's check the options again. Wait, the third option: "The black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas" - that would be wrong, because black is camouflaged. Wait, maybe the question is about the population of moths (not the eaten ones). Wait, no, the question is "what hypothesis is likely for Kettlewell to have made regarding moths and predation?" and the options are about the percentage of the population eaten. Wait, maybe I misread the option. Let's re - read the options:

1. There is no difference in the peppered moth predation between industrial and non - industrial areas. → Wrong, because the study is about the difference.

2. The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas. → In industrial areas, trees are dark. White moths are visible, so birds eat more white moths. So this could be a hypothesis.

3. The black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas. → Black moths are camouflaged in industrial areas, so birds eat less of them. So this is wrong.

4. The grey form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas. → Grey is between white and black. In dark (soot - covered) trees, grey is also more visible than black, but less than white? But the main contrast is between white and black. So this is less likely.

5. The percentages will remain stable but the population will grow rapidly in industrial areas. → The study is about the change in frequency, so this is wrong.

6. The percentages will remain stable as the entire population dies out in industrial areas. → Wrong, as moths are present in industrial areas.

Wait, but the original study of Kettlewell was about the black moths being more common in industrial areas because they were camouflaged, so white moths were eaten more. So the hypothesis would be that in industrial areas, the white form is eaten more (so forms the greatest percentage of the population eaten). But wait, the option says "The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas". But let's check again. Wait, maybe I got the direction wrong. The question is about the hypothesis. Kettlewell wanted to explain why black moths are more frequent in industrial areas. So the hypothesis would be that in industrial areas, black moths are preyed upon less (so white moths are preyed upon more), so the percentage of white moths eaten is higher. So the correct option should be the second one? But wait, maybe I made a mistake. Wait, no, let's think again. The key is that the background color (soot - dark) makes the black moths less visible, so birds eat more of the white moths. So the white form will be eaten more, so in the population of moths that are eaten, the white form is the greatest percentage. So the correct answer is "The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas" (option 2) or wait, no, the third option is "The black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas" - that can't be. Wait, maybe I misread the option. Wait, the third option: "The black form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas" - that would be incorrect. The correct hypothesis is that in industrial areas, the moths that don't match the background (white) are eaten more, so the white form is eaten more. So the correct option is the second one: "The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas". Wait, but let's check the original text again. The text says "Kettlewell proposed that the birds would prey upon whichever moth was easiest to spot, and that the change in background color from soot would change the type of moth that was preyed upon most often." In industrial areas, the background is dark, so the white moth is easiest to spot, so birds prey on it most. So the hypothesis is that the white form will be the one preyed upon most (form the greatest percentage of the population eaten) in industrial areas. So the correct answer is the second option.

Wait, but I'm confused because the standard peppered moth story is that black moths are more common in industrial areas because they survive predation better. So the ones that are eaten more are the white ones. So the hypothesis would be that in industrial areas, white moths are eaten more (so form the greatest percentage of the population eaten). So the correct option is "The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas".

# Answer:
The white form will form the greatest percentage of the population eaten in industrial areas

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