melanism
Excessive black coloring
Melanism is an unusually dark pigmentation of skin, feathers, or fur, caused by excess melanin.
The term appears most often in zoology, describing animals darker than typical for their species—black panthers are melanistic leopards or jaguars.
Melanism can be genetic or environmentally influenced, and sometimes offers survival advantages: Industrial melanism helped dark moths survive in polluted areas.
Growing less bright
- colorationSurface hue arrangement
- hyperpigmentationLocalized skin darkening condition
- melanocyteCell that produces melanin
- skinBody's outer layer
fur · feathers · scales · coat · morph · eumelanin · melanotic · pigment
Permanent DNA alteration
- alleleGene variant at one locus
- pigmentationNatural tissue coloring
- genotypeOrganism's complete allele set
- phenotypeObservable characteristics of organism
inheritance · dominant · recessive · gene · locus · chromosome · heredity · polygenic
Concealment through visual blending
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
- predationHunting and consuming prey
- fitnessGood physical shape
- habitatOrganism's natural environment
pollution · soot · concealment · environment · mimicry
darkening
Growing less bright
- colorationSurface hue arrangement
- hyperpigmentationLocalized skin darkening condition
- melanocyteCell that produces melanin
skin · fur · feathers · scales · coat · morph · eumelanin · melanotic · pigment · aberrant
mutation
Permanent DNA alteration
- alleleGene variant at one locus
- pigmentationNatural tissue coloring
- genotypeOrganism's complete allele set
phenotype · inheritance · dominant · recessive · gene · locus · chromosome · heredity · polygenic · homozygous
camouflage
Concealment through visual blending
habitat · pollution · soot · concealment · environment · mimicry
- bird markingsbars, bands, barred, banded, spots
- birth defectsbirth defect, birth defects, malformation, cleft lip, cleft palate
- colorationpigment, pigmentation, hue, tint, saturation
- Genetic Traitshair color, dark hair, skin color, dimples, blood type
- pigmentationeumelanin, melanocytes, skin color, pigment, skin tone
- variationgenetic diversity, polymorphism, geographic variation, subspecies, coat patterns
melanismalbinism
Inherited melanin deficiency
depigmentation · hypomelanosis · vitiligo · albino · paleness