Question

How are water striders able to walk on water without breaking through the water's surface?

A) They have special lightweight shoes.
B) They secrete oils that repel water.
C) They use tiny water-skis.
D) They have strong legs.

Answer 1

Water striders walk on water due to surface tension, which supports their weight since they exert less force downwards than the cohesive forces between water molecules.

Step-by-step explanation:

Water striders are able to walk on water without breaking the surface because they take advantage of a property called surface tension. The legs of the water strider are adapted to distribute their weight evenly over a larger area, and the downward force they exert is less than the cohesive forces among the water molecules at the surface. Therefore, the water strider does not sink, allowing it to move across the water's surface as if it were walking on a solid film.