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Fine to very fine muddy sand on the mid shore at the lower extreme of estuaries, and in moderately exposed and sheltered bays and marine inlets, sometimes subject to variable salinity. The infauna is characterised by the polychaetes Eteone longa, Hediste diversicolor (ragworm) and Pygospio elegans, oligochaetes (mostly Tubificoides benedii and T. pseudogaster), the crustaceans Corophium volutator and Crangon crangon, the spire shell Peringia ulvae and the baltic tellin Macoma balthica. The cockle Cerastoderma edule may be abundant, and the sand gaper Mya arenaria may be superabundant, though these species are not always present, or may be missed in core samples due to their large size. The polychaetes Arenicola marina, Polydora cornuta and Capitella capitata, the shrimp Crangon crangon, and the Mussel Mytilus edulis are sometimes present.