The intertidal area, exposed to both wind and sea as the tide moves in and out, is often referred to as a mudflat. Species tend to grow quicker and become larger on soft mud, whereas higher numbers of smaller animals tend to be found on sandy mud habitats. Mud settles in depressions in the seabed, but can only do so where the water movement is limited. Too much water movement will prevent the fine silt and clay from settling.
It can form vast plains of what seems to be an empty desert, but in reality mud is very rich in nutrients and is able to support a great number of species. Muddy areas can be found all around the coasts and throughout the seas of the UK, from the shoreline to the depths of the deep sea. Intertidal mudflats are found in sheltered coastal inlets such as estuaries and harbours. Around the coasts of the UK, intertidal mudflats cover around , ha of land.
From a distance, mud can appear barren and lifeless. But nothing could be further from the truth! In the dark depths of the deep sea, wildlife thrives in muddy habitats. Brittlestars, spider crabs and lobsters scurry across the surface, whilst species like bristleworms burrow into the mud.
Scampi, the fish-shop favourite, can be found in self-dug burrows in muddy seabeds. Subtidal mud, found in shallower areas that are never exposed to the air, even on the lowest tides, also hosts a great diversity of wildlife. Worms, bivalve molluscs, anemones and brittlestars can all be found living or feeding on these muddy plains.
Where the land meets the sea, intertidal mudflats are as important for animals that live above the waves as those that dwell beneath them.
Vast numbers of worms, bivalves and cockles bury themselves in the mud. As the tide drops and the mudflats are exposed to the air, it becomes a buffet for waterfowl and wading birds. Sea pens, which are related to sea anemones and corals, are perhaps the most characteristic and obvious animals in the mud.
The brittlestar hangs on with one or two of its five long, coiled arms, and uses the others to catch food. Another special feature of sea loch mud is the fireworks anemone Pachycerianthus multiplicatus. Deep, soft mud is an important habitat in Scotland and a surprising home for some special marine animals, like the Norway lobster, sea pens and the beautiful fireworks anemone. C NatureScot. The activities of all these animals help to aerate the mud, which would otherwise become anoxic lacking in oxygen just below the surface.
On mud at 65m in Loch Goil, there is an unusual community with abundant sea squirts, including the rare Styela gelatinosa , along with terebellid worms and the seven-rayed scallop Pseudamussium septemradiatum.
This odd assemblage of animals may be a relict from the last ice age. Burrowed mud habitats are vulnerable to a number of human pressures, but especially physical disturbance and pollution. For example, high levels of nutrients or organic material can cause the mud to become very low in oxygen, to the point that the typical communities can no longer survive.
Disturbance from large scale engineering operations or from towed fishing gears can also affect the quality of burrowed mud seabeds. Burrowed mud is protected in eight locations around Scotland by a suite of Marine Protected Areas shown in the map below. Elsewhere, the management of activities such as fishing and aquaculture can play a role in conserving this important habitat.
More information on the sites and how they are managed can be found at NatureScot's Sitelink and on the Marine Scotland web pages for some sites. For a number of sites detailed survey and monitoring reports also exist. Have a look at some photos of Scottish burrowed mud and some of the animals that live there. Our coasts and seas support a wealth of habitats and species and Scotland's economy.
We help to manage the marine environments many, often competing, uses. NatureScot has issued a protected species licence today, allowing beavers to be released into a new location in the Forth catchment. Partnership working on the actions being taken across South Lanarkshire to help pollinators. Forvie NNR - its very landscape created by the wind, the defining character of the Reserve itself.
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