How This Beetle Could Help Solve Our Water Crisis | Evolutionary Tech

Introduction: The Water Crisis

• Two-thirds of the global population faces extreme water shortages at least one month per year.

• Half a billion people lack sufficient water year-round; these numbers are projected to rise due to climate change.

• Areas lacking in traditional water sources often rely on fog as a crucial water source, exemplified in environments like the Namib Desert.

The Namib Desert

• One of the oldest and driest places globally; rainfall averages between half an inch to two inches per year.

• Classified as a fog desert, where fog is vital for supporting plant and animal life, including the Namib Desert beetle.

The Namib Desert Beetle's Unique Adaptation

• The beetle's ability to capture fog successfully is surprising, given its tiny and round shape, diverging significantly from traditional fog-collecting technology (which is based on natural mesh elements).

• Current technology designs utilize leaves and grass blades; effectiveness depends on wind speed, droplet size, and target shape.

How the Beetle Captures Fog

• Beetles ascend dunes when fog rolls in, using wind to assist in capturing water droplets that condense on their back; droplets then roll down toward their mouth.

• Unlike human attempts to gather fog (e.g. waving hands), the beetle successfully collects water from the air despite its elusive nature.

Research Implications

• Hunter King highlights the lack of understanding in how droplets initiate contact with the surface of the beetle's exoskeleton.

• Initial research indicated the presence of bumps on another beetle's exoskeleton, theorized to enhance fog collection, but it’s not the fog-basking species.

• King’s team pursued their experiments with 3D-printed surfaces with various textures: smooth, ridged, and bumpy, finding that one-millimeter bumps captured fog 2.5 times better than smooth surfaces.

Computational Fluid Dynamics Insights

• Collaborated with experts to model how droplets interact with surfaces, focusing on how droplets must displace air films to land on surfaces.

• The findings suggested that rougher textures minimize the energy droplets need to displace air for contact; thus, enhancing fog collection efficiency.

• Understanding the beetle’s method could revolutionize fog harvesting technologies.

Future Applications

• Enhancing existing fog capture technology could significantly improve drinking water access for communities.

• Broader implications include transforming agricultural practices: more effective fog harvesting could increase crop and livestock production.

• Concepts proposed include modifying refugee camp tents with bump textures for fog collection, maximizing resource utilization in fog-rich areas.

Conclusion: A Potential Solution to Water Scarcity

• The ongoing research into the fog-basking beetle and its exoskeleton properties holds promise for practical applications that may help alleviate water scarcity issues.

• By replicating the biological efficiency of the beetle, we could develop innovative methods for sourcing water from fog, potentially providing a sustainable solution for arid regions.