Thanks to Dr. Mark Grasmueck, an associate professor of Marine Geology and Geophysics at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science, the secret life of the Gopher Tortoise is now coming to light. Biologists used a one of a kind 3D-imaging system designed by Grasmueck to investigate the burrows of the slow-footed Gopher Tortoise – a nowadays threatened species that has been engineering subterranean tunnels throughout Florida for millennia.
The reptile’s tunnels can be nearly 70 feet long and more than 20 feet deep. The Tortoise’s burrows are cohabitated by many other life forms such as snakes, lizards, mammals, and insects. This diverse underground community has been very difficult for scientists to study without destroying the burrows and disturbing the inhabitants. The new imaging system allows to non-invasively record the details of tunnels and objects hidden underground. The 3D scans reveal that Gopher Tortoise burrows are “corkscrew-shaped” structures within an elaborate underground network of smaller side tunnels, remnants of abandoned tunnels and tree roots.
The 3D Ground Penetrating Radar system used in this study was originally developed for imaging and mapping of shallow soil and rock formations in geological, hydrological and archeological studies. Some examples can be seen on www.3dgpr.info.
The results of the Gopher Tortoise burrow study were published in the journal Geomorphology. For a short summary article you can read the National Wildlife Federation’s article here.
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