Ecosystem Engineering by Burrowing Mammals in Grassland Habitats

Burrowing mammals such as prairie dogs, pikas, ground squirrels and other fossorial species play a fundamental role in shaping grassland ecosystems through their digging and foraging activities. By excavating soil, creating burrows and associated mounds, and depositing organic matter, these animals generate fine-scale heterogeneity that controls water infiltration, nutrient distribution and microhabitat structure. Such engineering influences plant community composition, promotes seedling recruitment beneath nutrient-enriched microsites and moderates soil temperature and moisture regimes. The resulting patchwork of bare soil, vegetated islands and nutrient hotspots supports greater species richness, regulates carbon and nitrogen cycling and sustains ecosystem services including erosion control, forage production and groundwater recharge. The global significance of this process spans temperate prairies, alpine meadows and semi-arid steppes, with practical applications in grassland restoration, rangeland management and biodiversity conservation. Understanding how engineering effects vary with disturbance intensity, climate and land-use context is key to predicting grassland resilience under environmental change and guiding reintroduction or protection of keystone burrowers.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent work has tested the consistency of burrowing impacts across contrasting rainfall regimes by examining a medium-sized mammal in arid scrubland, semi-arid savannah and mesic grassland. Excavations altered soil compaction, moisture and temperature in all biomes, but effects on plant cover, species richness and community composition differed markedly among sites. In the mesic grassland, burrow entrances fostered greater plant diversity and shifted species assemblages, while in the arid scrubland they created nutrient-rich patches that amplified vegetation responses. Contrary to expectations, the magnitude of engineering effects did not correlate directly with precipitation, indicating that local soil properties and species interactions mediate outcomes. These findings underscore the need for site-specific assessments when forecasting the role of burrowing mammals in grassland restoration and conservation.

Ecosystem Engineering by Burrowing Mammals in Grassland Habitats publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in ecosystem engineering by burrowing mammals in grassland habitats across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Ecosystem engineer: A species that directly modifies habitat structure and abiotic conditions through its physical activities.

Bioturbation: The disturbance, mixing or turnover of soil layers by living organisms, especially through digging and burrowing.

Mima mound: A low, vegetated soil mound formed by repeated excavation and deposition by burrowing mammals.

Functional heterogeneity: Variation in habitat conditions and resource availability created by organismal activities, promoting biodiversity and ecosystem functioning.

References

1. Consequences of plateau pika disturbance on plant-soil carbon and nitrogen in alpine meadows. Frontiers in Plant Science (2024).
2. Cumulative effects of an herbivorous ecosystem engineer in a heterogeneous landscape. Ecosphere (2016).
3. Prairie Dog Decline Reduces the Supply of Ecosystem Services and Leads to Desertification of Semiarid Grasslands. PLOS ONE (2013).
4. Testing for consistency in the impacts of a burrowing ecosystem engineer on soil and vegetation characteristics across biomes. Scientific Reports (2019).