Burrowing

Burrowing is movement into or through a substrate by digging or pushing with the body. It creates passageways or chambers in soil, sediment, snow, or other materials.

Scratch digging: A digging method that removes substrate by repeatedly scraping it with the limbs. Many mammals loosen soil with their forelimbs before moving it behind them.
Soil texture: The relative proportions of sand, silt, and clay in a soil. Grain size affects how easily a burrow can be excavated and remain open.
Bioturbation: The disturbance and mixing of soil or sediment by living organisms. Burrowers redistribute particles and organic matter as they excavate and move.
Ecosystem engineering: The modification of habitats by organisms in ways that affect resources for other species. Burrowers change the physical environment beyond their immediate shelter needs.
Digging: The act of removing or displacing material, usually to make a hole or expose something. Burrowing is a form of digging when excavation carries an organism into the substrate.
Head-first burrowing: A burrowing method in which an animal advances by pushing or compacting substrate with its head. Some animals lack digging limbs and use the head itself to penetrate soil.
Soil porosity: The fraction of soil volume occupied by spaces between solid particles. Burrow walls and surrounding pores influence water and gas movement.
Earthworm: A segmented soil-dwelling invertebrate that feeds on organic matter and moves through soil. Earthworms are familiar burrowers that alter soil structure and nutrient distribution.
Nutrient cycling: The movement and transformation of nutrients through organisms, soil, water, and the atmosphere. Excavation and waste deposition can relocate nutrients between soil layers.
Fossorial locomotion: Movement specialized for travel through underground environments. Burrowing makes a passage; fossorial locomotion describes movement within that subterranean setting.

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