Abstract
H. B. D. Kettlewell's field experiments on industrial melanism in the peppered moth, Biston betularia, have become the best known demonstration of natural selection in action. I argue that textbook accounts routinely portray this research as an example of controlled experimentation, even though this is historically misleading. I examine how idealized accounts of Kettlewell's research have been used by professional biologists and biology teachers. I also respond to some criticisms of David Rudge to my earlier discussions of this case study, and I question Rudge's claims about the importance of purely observational studies for the eventual acceptance and popularization of Kettlewell's explanation for the evolution of industrial melanism.
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Hagen, J.B. Retelling Experiments: H.B.D. Kettlewell's Studies of Industrial Melanism in Peppered Moths. Biology & Philosophy 14, 39–54 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006576518561
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006576518561