The Namib Desert is one of the hottest and driest places in theworld. Not only does the temperature of the desert sand reach up to 140degrees, but there is also very little ground water in this area. However, theNamib beetle is able to live there. How does the Namib beetle succeed in livingin these terrible conditions? The beetle's shell(壳)allows it to turn fog into drinkable water!
Fog is a cloud of water drops. A few mornings of a week, fog appearsacross the desert floor. This is where the main water in the desert comes from.To collect the water from the fog, beetles climb to the top of the sand dunes(沙丘). They lift their special wings. The water drops down the beetle'swings and runs into its mouth.
Scientists have been thinking about how to make use of the beetle'swing scales(翅鳞) to collect water for people. Tools thatcollect water from fog have been around for a while and they were called fognets. But scientists think that they could be made much more useful by addingwaxy bumps(蜡状凸起物) to the design. Except for changingfog nets, scientists have invented a new type of water bottle. The inside of thewater bottle is covered in bumps like the Namib beetled wing scales. These waterbottles are special because they are self-filling! Would you want one of these waterbottles?
