Tiny beach-dwelling crustaceans are big-time sand movers, shaping the California coast
Stand on the damp sand on a California beach and chances are you're standing on top of an active earthworks site. Sand hoppers (Megalorchestia spp.), the tiny, shrimp-like creatures commonly found eating away at kelp on the shore, have been found to move massive amounts of sand, excavating up to 50 kg (110 pounds) of sand per meter (3.3 feet) of shoreline per day.
On a California beach, one can often find themselves standing atop an active earthworks site, due to the significant sand movement performed by tiny beach-dwelling crustaceans known as sand hoppers (Megalorchestia spp.). These shrimp-like creatures, commonly found eating kelp on the shore, have been discovered to excavate up to 110 pounds of sand per meter of shoreline per day, placing them among the most prolific bioturbators on Earth.
