Habitats. . .Desert
Desert arthropods have adapted in many ways to the
special challenges of heat, water shortages, and evaporation.
Heat
To avoid the relentless desert sun, many desert arthropods
go out only at night, concealing themselves during the day underground
or beneath plants and rocks.
Water Shortages
To retain water, they have a thick, waxy
body covering that acts like a thermos liner. They also remove
water from solid foods and efficiently reabsorb water from their
feces.
To avoid starvation, many desert arthropods are active only
when the plants on which they feed are plentiful. Others subsist
year-round on seeds and grasses blown across the sand.
Heat/Evaporation
The
darkling beetle
(family Tenebrionidae)
gets along on the tiny amount of water it extracts from seeds.
Its hard, waxy forewings protect its breathing tubes from the
harsh desert air.
Tarantulas
(family Theraphosidae) spend most
of their lives in burrows and feed on small mice, frogs, lizards,
and insects passing by.
Daytime is also an extended siesta for
scorpions
(Order Scorpiones),
vinegaroons
(Order Uropygi), and
centipedes
(Class Chilopoda), who emerge from underneath rocks and plants only at
night to hunt, mate, and find water.
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