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A large number of juvenile, sub-adult and adult individuals of Sparus aurata were collected in two adjacent Mediterranean coastal lagoons, Lake Fogliano and Lake Caprolace, located on the central Tyrrhenian coast of Italy. A comprehensive analysis of the feeding habits of this species was carried out using both univariate and multivariate statistical methods. The results showed that qualitative and quantitative changes in the diet of this species take place within the first months of development. Considerable feeding differences between sub-adult and adult individuals of two bream populations were found in the different coastal lagoons: specimens from Fogliano showed a significantly less diverse trophic spectrum, whereas specimens from Caprolace tended to feed on a larger variety of prey. The ecological significance of these differences and their implications for ecosystem management and conservation are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Both interspecific and intraspecific inter-lagoon differences, between the central Mediterranean coastal lakes of Fogliano and Caprolace, in the trophic patterns of the examined species Diplodus annularis, Diplodus puntazzo, Diplodus sargus, Lithognathus mormyrus and Sparus aurata were revealed by means of correspondence analysis. The most evident inter-lagoon qualitative and quantitative diet changes were observed in S. aurata. Feeding similarities among species were synthesized for each lake by means of multidimensional scaling. Trophic interrelationships among sparid fish were different in the two lagoons, as a direct consequence of diet variations in each species. Such differences are interpreted as possibly reflecting differences in the overall structure of the benthic communities. Different feeding models could be identified, each corresponding to a peculiar adaptive strategy for the consumption of lagoon benthic resources. The use of benthophagous fish feeding habits as a tool for the monitoring of the structure and the dynamics of coastal lagoon communities is discussed. Copyright 2002 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]