---
title: "Peper-en-zoutvlinder"
description: "Biston betularia — Insecten en spinnen. The peppered moth (Biston betularia) is a moth of the family Geometridae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/nl/animal/peppered-moth
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Peper-en-zoutvlinder

> Biston betularia — Insecten en spinnen. The peppered moth (Biston betularia) is a moth of the family Geometridae.

- Scientific name: *Biston betularia*
- Category: `insects` (Insecten en spinnen)
- Habitats: `forest` (Bos)
- iNaturalist observations: 19905
- Wikidata: [Q865651](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q865651)
- iNaturalist taxon: [143517](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/143517)

## Names

- en: Peppered Moth
- de: Birkenspanner
- fr: Phalène du Bouleau
- nl: Peper-en-zoutvlinder
- pl: Krępak nabrzozak

## Countries with the most observations

US (4554), CA (4387), GB (2423), DE (1436), FR (632), AT (602), RU (553), DK (497), ES (331), PL (313), CH (270), IT (229)

## Summary

The peppered moth (Biston betularia) is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is night flying, and found mainly in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. Peppered moth evolution is an example of population genetics and natural selection.
The caterpillars of the peppered moth not only mimic the form but also the colour of a twig. Recent research indicates that the caterpillars can sense the twig's colour with their skin and match their body colour to the background to protect themselves from predators.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peppered_moth

## Photo

![Peper-en-zoutvlinder](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/peppered-moth/medium.jpg)

Photo: Sarah Adamson · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/295312171

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/peppered-moth?lang=nl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).