Green Crab Impacts Data, 1996-

Dataset contains data from both laboratory and field experiments on the impacts of European green crab (Carcinus maenas) in Tasmanian coastal waters from January 1996 onwards. Impacts of primary interest are those on benthic infauna and native crabs. Most of the experiments were done inside the green crab's range in NE Tasmania (including Henderson Lagoon and Georges Bay), but also at some control sites in SE Tasmania (e.g. Norfolk Bay, Upper Pitwater). Studies included both inclusion and exclusion caging experiments, in which green crabs were included and excluded from caged areas, respectively, and the impacts over time on other fauna inside the cages determined. Infaunal surveys were done at several sites both inside and outside the crab's range in Tasmania, with particular emphasis on bivalves and gastropods. Infaunal surveys at several SE Victorian sites were later included for comparison. Studies were done in collaboration with scientists from the Smithsonian Environmental Reseach Centre in Maryland, USA, and Honours students from Department of Zoology, University of Tasmania. Subsets of the data are held at Smithsonian Environmental Research Centre, Maryland, and at Dept. Zoology, University of Tasmania.