Stenocara gracilipes
Stenocara gracilipes | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Coleoptera |
Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
Family: | Tenebrionidae |
Genus: | Stenocara |
Species: | S. gracilipes
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Binomial name | |
Stenocara gracilipes Solier, 1835
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Stenocara gracilipes is a species of beetle that is native to the
To drink water, the S. gracilipes stands on a small ridge of sand using its long, spindly legs. Facing into the breeze, with its body angled at 45°, the beetle catches fog droplets on its hardened wings, or elytra. Its head faces upwind, and its stiff, bumpy elytra are spread against the damp breeze. Minute water droplets (15-20 µm in diameter) from the fog gather on its wings; there the droplets stick to hydrophilic (water-loving) bumps, which are surrounded by waxy, hydrophobic troughs. Droplets flatten as they make contact with the hydrophilic surfaces, preventing them from being blown by wind and providing a surface for other droplets to attach. Accumulation continues until the combined droplet weight overcomes the water's electrostatic attraction to the bumps as well as any opposing force of the wind; in a 30 km/h breeze, such a droplet would stick to the wing until it grows to roughly 5 mm in diameter; at that point it will roll down the beetle's back to its mouthparts.
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have emulated this capability by creating a textured surface that combines alternating hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials. Potential uses include extracting moisture from the air[1] and creating fog-free windows and mirrors. A company called NBD Nano is attempting to commercialize the technology.[2][3][needs update]
Recently, it has been shown that these beetles may also obtain water from dew (i.e. from humid air without fog).[4][5]
See also
- Onymacris unguicularis, another fog-basking Namib desert beetle
- Physosterna cribripes, another fog-basking Namib desert beetle
References
- ^ Airdrop Irrigation at gizmag. Retrieved 2015-01-05.
- ^ "Official NBD homepage". Retrieved 2012-10-29.
- ^ "Namib Desert beetle inspires self-filling water bottle". BBC News. 2012-11-23.
- ^ Springer Corporate Communications (8 December 2014). "Biomimetic dew harvesters". Springer. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
- ^ de la Giroday, Maryse (December 2014). "Do Tenebrionind beetles collect dew or condensation—a water issue at the nanoscale". FrogHeart Communications. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
Further reading
- Parker, A. R. & C. R. Lawrence (2001). "Water capture by a desert beetle". S2CID 34785113.
- Guadarrama-Cetina, J.M.; et al. (2014). "Dew condensation on desert beetle skin". Eur. Phys. J. E. 37 (11): 109. S2CID 21054231.
- Harries-Rees, Karen (August 31, 2005). "Desert beetle provides model for fog-free nanocoating". Chemistry World News. Royal Society of Chemistry.
- "Stenocara beetle". Biomimicry Guild. Archived from the original on 2006-12-08. Retrieved 2006-12-14.