Interactions between non-native and native shore crabs on the Swedish west coast
Detta är ett förslag på examensarbete för kandidat- eller masternivå vid Institutionen för marina vetenskaper. Examensarbeten vid Institutionen för marina vetenskaper görs självständigt och bedöms individuellt.
Subject: Marine Biology/Ecology
Suitable level and length: Master (30 credits)
Time period: Summer or early fall. The student can start in September or earlier. A spring project is not possible due to difficulties in finding the target species in the field.
Supervisors: Lars Gamfeldt, Björn Källström
Location: Gothenburg
Project background
Pressures on nature are greater today than ever before in human history. One major threat is the arrival of non-native species, which can invade and severely alter local ecosystems.
Several non-native species of marine crabs have entered Swedish ecosystems, but we do not have a good picture of the effects these species might have on local food webs and interactions between species.
Project Description
Collect crabs and prey in the field. Design and set up experiments in the lab to test how multiple species of crabs interact with each other and how their interactions affect predation on both natural prey species and the crabs themselves.
Target species
Carcinus maenas (native), Hemigrapsus sanguineus (non-native), Hemigrapsus takanoi (non-native).
Contact
Lars Gamfeldt,
Department of Marine Sciences
Email: lars.gamfeldt@gu.se
Björn Källström,
Gothenburg Marine Biological Laboratory
Email: bjorn.kallstrom@gmbl.se