A laboratory burrow and mudflat system was used to examine aspects of burrow air-phase maintenance and utilization by the amphibious mudskipper Scartelaos histophorus. While confined to its burrow during simulated 'high tide', this species respires both aquatically and aerially, in the latter case utilizing an air phase it had established by transporting air into the burrow during simulated 'lo...

A new ichnogenus and ichnospecies of burrow, Katbergia carltonichnus, are described from Upper Permian and Lower Triassic rocks of the Karoo Basin, South Africa, where they are preserved in pedogenically modified overbank deposits that are interpreted as inceptisols subsequently gleysol overprinted. Sigmoidal burrows consist of a long (‡0.5 m) cylindrical tube, ranging from 1–2 cm in diameter, ...

Using crab-like dummies, we have shown previously that fiddler crabs [Uca vomeris (McNeill)] defend their burrows against intruders in a burrow-centred frame of reference. The crabs respond whenever an intruder approaches to within a certain distance of the burrow entrance, and this distance is independent of the approach direction. We show here that the crabs combine information from the path ...

The mud shrimp Austinogebia edulis, being abundant in the intertidal zone of western Taiwan, constructs deep burrows (>1 m). This study highlights the potential of mud shrimps to modify sediment characteristics of the tidal flat by its burrowing behavior. We studied the structure of the burrow wall, compared the difference in the sediment composition of the burrow and the background sediment, a...

Digger wasps dig nest burrows in which they lay an egg. They cover the burrow entrance with pebbles, making it all but invisible, then fly off in search of insect prey. They sting their prey to paralyze it, carry it back to the burrow, open the burrow, drag the prey inside, exit the burrow and close it up again. The larva that hatches from the egg eats the paralyzed, still living prey. This asp...

The influence of burrow spacing on sedimentary nitrification and denitrification was simulated experimentally using sediment plugs of different thicknesses immersed in aerated seawater reservoirs. Different plug thicknesses mimic different distances between oxygenated burrow centers and produce similar changes in aerobic–anaerobic reaction balances as a function of diffusive transport scaling. ...

Large-diameter ichnofossils comprising three morphotypes have been identified in the Upper Triassic Ischigualasto and Los Colorados formations of northwestern Argentina. These burrows add to the global record of the early appearance of fossorial behavior during early Mesozoic time. Morphotypes 1 and 2 are characterized by a network of tunnels and shafts that can be assigned to tetrapod burrows ...

Bandicota bengalensis, a predominant species inhabiting irrigated fields is a potential pest on agricultural crops and is known to live in extensive burrow systems. The burrow opening covered with mud which is an indicator of its activity seems to be discontinuous. An analysis of burrow systems and their occupations indicated reuse of abandoned burrow systems by new entrants. A study simulated ...

Re-occupation of existing nesting burrows in the European bee-eater Merops apiaster has only rarely - and if so mostly anecdotically - been documented in the literature record, although such behavior would substantially save time and energy. In this study, we quantify burrow re-occupation in a German colony over a period of eleven years and identify ecological variables determining reuse probab...

Adverse effects of agrochemicals on earthworms' burrowing behaviour can have crucial impacts on the entire ecosystem. In the present study, we have therefore assessed short- and long-term effects on burrowing behaviour in the earthworm species Aporrectodea caliginosa and Lumbricus terrestris after exposure to a range of imidacloprid concentrations (0.2-4 mg kg(-1) dry weight (DW)) for different...