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Stenocara gracilipes is a species of beetle that is native to the Namib Desert in southern Africa. This is one of the most arid areas of the world, receiving only 1.4 centimetres (0.55 in) of rain per year. The beetle is able to survive by collecting water on its bumpy back surface from early morning fogs.
Due to the large variety of darkling beetle species in the Namib Desert, different beetles from the region have been confused with each other. Such is the case with Onymacris unguicularis and Stenocara gracilipes, which in non-scientific literature have both been called the “fog-basking beetle.”
The Toktokkie beetles have specific behaviors that allow them to survive in arid environments like the Namib Desert. Most of the beetles perform “headstands” to obtain moisture from the fog that rolls in from the Atlantic Ocean. Toktokkies time their movements around the fog, which usually rolls in during the late evening and early morning.
Gemsbok Plains zebra Kirk's dik-dik Springbok antelope Wildebeest African buffalo Ground pangolin Namib Desert beetle High dunes in the Namib Desert. The wildlife of Namibia is composed of its flora and fauna. Namibia's endangered species include the wild dog, black rhino, oribi and puku.
The Stenocara beetle, which lives in the Namib desert, climbs sand dunes when the humid wind is blowing from the ocean to access the ambient water. [8] An example of plants adapting to the fog desert's climate is the genus Welwitschia which also grows in the Namib desert and grows only two leaves through its life. The leaves have large pores to ...
Distribution and habitat [ edit ] W. mirabilis is endemic to the desert bordering the Angolan and Namibian coast, between 4.8 km (3.0 mi) and 149 km (93 mi) inland, and from 14.12°S, near the Bentiaba River in Angola, to 23.64°S, near the Kuiseb River in Namibia, a distance of 1,096 km (681 mi). [ 23 ]
Three-day-old fawn Oryx at Sesriem entrance in Namib Desert Mother and calf at the Buffalo Zoo. The gemsbok is polygynous, with one resident male mating with the receptive females in the herd. The male is known to secure exclusive mating access to the females by attempting to herd mixed or nursery herds onto his territory.
Fog in the coastal parts of the desert provides the necessary moisture for the organisms' survival. In the Namib they grow on shrubs, rocks and pebbles of the gravel plains. These small organisms can densely cover large areas, forming lichen fields. The desert hosts 120 lichen species. Most of them are rare and a significant number of them ...