Not Wind, Not Waves: These Unlikely Local Residents Are Reshaping California's Coasts

Key Points:

• Sand hoppers, small crustaceans prevalent on California's coast, can move up to 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of sand per meter of shoreline overnight, significantly reshaping the beach landscape.
• Researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara, found that about 21,450 sand hoppers inhabit every three meters of shoreline, collectively engaging in bioturbation by digging new burrows nightly to avoid predators.
• These nocturnal creatures dig fresh burrows each night due to their need for sand with optimal moisture levels, which vary with the tides, causing continuous sediment movement along the coast.
• The sand hoppers' burrowing activity contributes to dune formation by moving sand that is then blown further up the beach by wind, influencing the local ecosystem in ways comparable to major rivers.
• Through their digging, sand hoppers aerate the sand, maintain oxygen levels, and help incorporate organic matter into the sediment, supporting other beach life and demonstrating an outsized ecological impact for their size.