-
Asked by to Phillip, Daren, Lynne, Simon on 17 Jun 2014. This question was also asked by .
-
Phillip Manning answered on 17 Jun 2014:
Our species, Homo Sapiens, has been around for hundreds of thousands of years and we have adapted to the multiple environments that we occupy around the world. Skin, hair and eye pigmentation are some of the most visible adaptations to environments. The most dominant pigment used by our species is melanin, which comes in two major forms emelanin (dark colours) and phaoemelanin (light colour and orange). If you live in hot/sunnier areas those with more dark pigment in their skin will be selected for, as eumelanin helps protect the skin, hair and eyes from UV (Sun) damage. Those in higher latitudes will not have to deal with this selection filter, so those with light hair will survive equally as those with dark, so then it comes down to other selective pressures. This is why I end-up looking like a red lobster when working in hot deserts digging dinosaurs, as my Danish ancestry (thanks mum!) means I have few adaptations to deal with blazing sun…so I wear a hat!
-
-
anon answered on 18 Jun 2014:
Like Phillip said – just like animals have adapted to their climates, humans have adapted to the environment that they live in too!
-
Daren Fearon answered on 18 Jun 2014:
Phillip has already given a great answer. Sometimes I wish I didn’t have pale Scottish skin – I need to be very careful in the sun.
Comments