Variability of fouling communities in the Mar Piccolo of Taranto (Northern Ionian Sea, Mediterranean Sea)

In order to investigate the intensity and variability of fouling recruitment on artificial hard substrates, three sites were chosen in the First Inlet of the Mar Piccolo of Taranto (Southern Italy, Ionian Sea). Taxa richness and percentage coverage were examined in three different sampling times within each site. Differences were tested both by univariate and multivariate statistical analysis (ANOVA, SIMPER and MDS). The results show that each site seems to be characterized by its own structural make-up over the whole period of observation, underlying the presence of large-scale variability. By contrast, variability on a smaller scale within each site (replicates) appeared less marked, both in space and time. A set fa quite stable group of species characterized each site. Differences between sites were maintained over time with a difference in community evolution although with a tendency towards a higher similarity in species composition along the time.