Moisture requirements were evaluated for female adults of spider beetles Mezium affine Boieldieu and Gibbium aequinoctiale Boieldieu to determine how they are differentially adapted for life in a dry environment. Features showing extreme desiccation resistance of M. affine were an impermeable cuticle wherein activation energies (43 kJ/mol) were suppressed, daily water losses as little as 0.3%/day with an associated group effect, a low 64% water content and an impressive ability to survive nearly 3 months with no food and water. Behaviorally, the extended period of water stress and fasting was marked by long intervals of physical inactivity (quiescence), as though dead. These characteristics emphasizing water retention rather than gain are shared by G. aequinoctiale and reflect a typical xerophilic water balance profile. Water uptake was restricted to imbibing liquid, as evidenced by uptake of dye-stained droplets of free water and a critical equilibrium activity of 1.00a(v), where the inability to absorb water vapor from the air fails to equilibrate declining water levels (gain not equal to loss) except at saturation. Four-fold reduction in survival time within dry air and accelerated water loss rates with high activation energies for female adults of the closely related winged Prostephanus truncatus (Say) suggest that the enhanced water conservation of spider beetles is due, in part, to fusion of their elytra supplemented by entering into quiescence.

In recent years, the agrifood sector has been relevantly impacted by resource shortage, food loss and waste across the whole supply chain. This study assesses, from a life cycle perspective, the water footprint of the fruit and vegetable losses occurring within the Italian agrifood supply chain, analyzing the potential linkages between circular economy policies and water management. The study methodology consists of three consequential steps: the definition of system boundaries, the data collection from databases and reports, and the processing of said data. Based on data availability of food losses, the following food items were chosen for the analysis, representing about 60% of the Italian fruits and vegetables domestic supply: tomatoes and onions for the macro-group of vegetables; orange, lemons, apples and grapes for the macro-group of fruits. Assessing the water footprint for the six categories of products, this study found out that, although less than other products, the amount of grapes lost along the supply chain determines a very high percentage of water loss. The tomato supply chain has proved to be the most sustainable in terms of water loss, due to the low amount of water needed to cultivate tomatoes. The analysis of the Italian trade market of fruits and vegetables has shown that water losses are mainly due to imports from France and Spain, in line with the high trade volumes. Finally, a weakness of the Italian fruit and vegetable supply chain was observed in the transport phase, because in this phase large quantities of food loss are associated with large volumes of water loss. Far from being the only tool to be used in the decision-making processes, the assessment of water loss embodied in the food loss, can be useful for managing the supply chain processes of perishable foods, ensuring process yield improvements, food quality traceability and environmental impact mitigation.