TROPHIC STRUCTURE AND COMMUNITY COMPOSITION OF POLYCHAETES INHABITINGSOME SABELLARIA-ALVEOLATA (L) REEFS ALONG THE VALENCIA GULF-COAST, WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN

A total of 24 samples from Sabellaria alveolata reefs have been collec ted and subjected to cluster analysis using the trophic dominance of e ach feeding guild as grouping variables. The result is the arrangement of samples by colony physical structure and S. alveolata dominance. R elating cluster groups to reef development phases reveals an inverse r elationship between reef growth and the organization of the associated polychaete taxocoenosis. During the growth phase of the reef, S. alve olata dominates the community, excluding other taxa from colonization. Growth is followed by the destruction phase. Negative physical and bi ological factors for reef enlargement may open patches on the reef sur face, allowing recruitment of other species and colony erosion. The en d of this phase is represented by eroded reefs with high structural co mplexity and high species richness.