Burrowing behaviour and sediment reworking in the heart urchin Brissopsis lyrifera Forbes (Spatangoida)

Abstract.

Sediment reworking due to burrowing and feeding was studied in the spatangoid Brissopsis lyrifera, at two different temperatures (7°C and 13°C). Spine activity and burrowing behaviour were recorded with a real-time video camera. Reworked sediment volume was calculated from tracks produced by the heart urchin. Ingestion rates were measured by feeding the heart urchins with luminophores. Temperature had a significant effect on the bioturbation activity of B. lyrifera. At 13°C reworked sediment volume due to burrowing was 22 ml sediment h^–1 and at 7°C 14 ml sediment h^–1. The ingested amount of sediment was 0.08 and 0.02 g dry sediment h^–1 in 13 and 7°C, respectively. Reworked sediment volume due to burrowing was 60–150 times higher than the volume ingested. The large reworked volume is a consequence of B. lyrifera moving with a rocking motion through the sediment. The spines were continuously transporting sediment around the test with 5-min metachronal wave cycles.