Daily Devotional – September 6

Biology

One of Australia’s more bizarre creatures is the thorny devil. It looks like a walking cactus with sharp spikes all over its body. In the desert, there is not much water, but during the cool nights, dew collects on the lizard’s spikes. Tiny grooves or channels between the spikes direct the condensed water to the thorny devil’s mouth - allowing him to quench his thirst. The water is not moved by a pump or gravity, but by capillary action. You can see capillary action by placing a straw into a glass of water. Notice that the water rises up into the straw above the level of water in the glass. The smaller the channel, the further up the water will flow. Once water is in the grooves, all the lizard needs to do is swallow - this action sucks the water to his mouth, which in turn causes more water to move along the grooves.

Not only can the thorny lizard capture moisture at night from dew, it can also remove moisture from the vegetation it moves through by rubbing his belly on wet rocks or kicking damp sand on his back. What a design! The system effectively and efficiently sucks water from all over his body. He uses this superpower to the hilt, like a walking sponge; the thorny devil gathers all the water he needs. It is hard to believe that this system of grooves came about by accident and chance through millions of years. This system of spikes and grooves needed to be present from the beginning in order for the lizard to survive in a desert environment. What an ingenious water-collecting system!

The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness….

~ Isaiah 43:20

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.