Macrofaunal benthic assemblages of a clam-dredged sandy beach in the Gulf of Valencia (Western Mediterranean)

Abstract

The macrofaunal benthic community of a sandy beach exposed to the effects of commercial clam dredging was studied to characterise the species distributions and assemblages. Two well-differentiated macrofaunal communities were found: a shallower one characterised by the bivalve Donax trunculus and the crab Portumnus latipes, occurring between 0.5 and 2.5 m depth, typical of fine and medium sandy sediments subjected to strong hydrodynamism, and a deeper, more diverse one, characterised by the bivalves Chamelea gallina, Donax semistriatus, Mactra stultorum, the gastropod Nassarius mutabilis and the crab Liocarcinus vernalis, typical of well sorted fine sand sediments