Distribution patterns of shallow water polychaetes (Annelida) along the coast of Alexandria, Egypt (eastern Mediterranean)

Shallow hard bottom and intertidal soft bottom polychaete assemblages of the Alexandria coast, south-eastern Mediterranean (Levantine Sea), were studied during a complete annual cycle in order to analyze spatial temporal patterns of variation in assemblages, and relevant factors related to polychaete distribution. The present study recorded a total of 73 species, belonging to Syllidae (22 species), Nereididae (9 species), Serpulidae (6 species), Eunicidae (5 species) and another 19 families. The assemblages experienced pronounced spatial and temporal variation throughout the study area, but spatial variation appeared more important in determining the observed patterns. Polychaete distribution related to variation of grain size and sessile macrobenthos cover suggesting that these structural variables accounted more than the physical-chemical ones (namely BOD, dissolved oxygen, organic carbon, organic matter, salinity, temperature, pH) in influencing the patterns of assemblage distribution. A total of 9 alien polychaete species were found solely on hard substrata, of which Pseudonereis anomala and Linopherus canariensis formed dense population in the area. The present study is the south-eastern-most one dealing with the ecology and distribution patterns of hard bottom polychaetes from the Mediterranean Sea, as well as one of the few studies dealing with intertidal soft bottom polychaetes in the Levant Basin.