Oxygen and inorganic nitrogen contents and fluxes in burrows of the shrimps Callianassa japonica and Upogebia major

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Abstract
Concentrations of dissolved O2 and inorganic nitrogenous compounds in burrows occupied by the shrimps C. japonica (de Haan) and U. major (de Haan) were compared to those in the overlying waters under simulated in situ conditions. Dissolved O2 content in the burrow was considerably lower; it ranged from 12-45% of saturation values for C. japonica burrows and from 30-41% for U. major burrows, respectively. One order of magnitude higher values for ammonium and 2-3 times higher nitrate plus nitrite values, compared to overlying waters, were also observed. Both O2 and inorganic N data indicate that the burrow water is distinctively different from overlying waters and forms a unique microenvironment for benthic microorganisms. Estimated rates of irrigation by the burrowing shrimps, based on the O2 balance in the burrow at 20.5.degree. C, were 32-89 ml h-1 for C. japonica and 14 and 33 ml h-1 for U. major. The burrow, formed and maintained by the burrowing shrimps, has roughly the same O2 consumption and ammonium production as the surrounding sediment surface, the metabolically most active site in the sediment.