Bioturbation Structures Of Polychaetes In Muddy Sediments

Bioturbation is an ecological process driven by organisms, which transport nutrients and gases from air/water to sediment through their galleries by the time they feed, burrow and/or construct galleries. Species with distinct galleries could create levels of bioturbation, affecting the benthic interactions. In this sense, it is fundamental developing a non-destructive method that permits identifying/quantifying the properties of these galleries. This experimental study provided information about bioturbation structures of polychaetes in muddy sediments, which support the improvement of knowledge on bioturbation processes in marine benthic systems.