fossorial

Fossorial describes animals that are adapted to digging or living primarily underground. The term comes from Latin fossor, "digger," and is used across multiple vertebrate and invertebrate groups to denote specialization for subterranean life, often involving burrows or tunnels.

Common adaptations include strong forelimbs and claws for digging, a compact body shape, reduced or hidden eyes, and enhanced tactile or vibrissal sensing. Fur, scales, or hair orientation may minimize resistance and debris in tunnels. Some species also exhibit skull and dental modifications that aid soil penetration. These traits support movement through loose soil, efficient foraging, and protection from surface predators.

In mammals, moles, mole-rats, and marsupial moles are classic fossorial groups; in amphibians, caecilians are obligate subterranean specialists; various snakes and lizards, as well as certain crustaceans, also show fossorial lifestyles. The category encompasses a range from obligate subterranean dwellers to facultative tunnel users, and it can be found in both small and large organisms.

Ecology and behavior: fossorial species typically feed on soil invertebrates, fungi, or plant material located underground, and they often inhabit stable, moist soils. They may maintain extensive tunnel networks that influence soil structure and nutrient cycling. Their underground life reduces exposure to some predators but can increase vulnerability to soil-borne pathogens and drought.

Fossoriality is a convergent adaptation across distant lineages. Some species are obligate fossorial, while others are semi-fossorial, foraging on the surface or in shallow tunnels.