Adaptive Melanism

Definition

Adaptive melanism is an evolutionary process where darker individuals come to predominate over lighter ones due to natural selection because they have better survival or reproductive success.

Analogy

Imagine you're playing hide-and-seek at night. You'd be more likely to win if you were wearing dark clothes rather than light ones because you'd blend into your surroundings better. That's what adaptive melanism does for animals—it helps them survive by making them less visible to predators or more successful hunters themselves.

Related terms

Natural Selection: The process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

Camouflage: An adaptation that allows animals to blend in with certain aspects of their environment increasing chances of survival.

Evolution: The process by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to have developed and diversified from earlier forms during the history of the earth.