Burrow

A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of locomotion. Burrows provide a form of shelter against predation and exposure to the elements and can be found in nearly every biome and among various biological interactions. Burrows can be constructed into a wide variety of substrates, and can range in complexity from a simple tube a few centimetres long to a complex network of interconnecting tunnels and chambers hundreds or thousands of metres in total length, such as a well-developed rabbit warren.

Vertebrate burrows

A wide variety of vertebrates construct or use burrows in many different types of substrate and . Mammals are perhaps most well known for burrowing, especially Insectivora like the voracious mole, and rodents like the prolific gopher and groundhog. The rabbit, a member of the family Lagomorpha, is a well-known burrower. There are estimations that a single groundhog burrow occupies a full cubic metre, displacing 320 kilograms of dirt. Even Carnivora like the meerkat, and marsupials, are burrowers. The largest burrowing animal is probably the polar bear when it makes its maternity den in snow or earth.

Burrowing (politics)

Burrowing is a slang term used in the United States to describe the practice in which political appointees are given civil service protection. Except for judges, political appointees are subject to losing their jobs when a new administration takes power. On the other hand, career government officials are protected from losing their jobs when a new administration takes over. Burrowing is therefore the practice of reassigning people who do not have civil service protection into jobs that have civil service protection.

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