From David Fee
You report that finger skin wrinkling as a result of soaking in water could be a beneficial adaptation as it gives better grip in wet conditions (12 January, p 15). Surely this is a classic example of what author Raymond Tallis calls “Darwinitis”.
Not every physical characteristic need confer an adaptive advantage. A characteristic can surely be adaptively neutral, of no great benefit or disadvantage.
Exeter, Devon, UK
