Vertebrate Burrows

Abstract

A large proportion of living vertebrates, particularly mammals, excavate burrows. At least half of the extant mammalian species are partially fossorial, and the habit has also been developed by many fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and even birds. Yet vertebrate burrows have rarely been reported as fossils. Possible explanations for this dearth of information or occurrences are: (1) lack of detailed observations, (2) tendency of burrowers to avoid areas of active sedimentation and (or) (3) an evolutionary increase in the burrowing habit as a result of Cenozoic climatic changes. The census of modern and fossil burrows and burrowers given herein emphasizes the potential paleoecological, paleoclimatic, and phylogenetic importance of fossil burrows.