Ecological functions of bioturbation in ecosystems
have received increasing attention over the recent
decades, and crab burrowing has been considered as
one of the major bioturbations affecting the physical
and chemical processes in salt marshes. This study
assessed the integrated effects of crab excavating and
burrow mimic trapping on sediment turnover and
vertical C and N distributions in a Chinese salt marsh
in the Yangtze River estuary. Crab burrowing
increased soil water content and the turnover of
carbon and nitrogen and decreased bulk soil density.
Vertical movement of materials, nutrient cycling
and reuse driven by crab burrowing might be
obstructed by vegetation (Phragmites australis and
Spartina alterniflora communities). The amount of
soil excavated by crab burrowing was higher than