Data presented in the paper "Prey preferences of invasive (Hemigrapsus sanguineus, H. takanoi) and native (Carcinus maenas) intertidal crabs in the European Wadden Sea"

Research objective: In order assess the potential for resource overlap and subsequent competition between native and invasive crabs in the European Wadden Sea, we investigated the prey preferences of three invasive (Hemigrapsus sanguineus, H. takanoi) and native (Carcinus maenas) intertidal crab species. Type of research, method & collection of data: In laboratory feeding experiments, the three crab species H. sanguineus, H. takanoi and C. maenas were offered four different prey species (blue mussels Mytilus edulis, sea lettuce Ulva lactuca, periwinkle snails Littorina littorea and amphipods Gammarus locusta). To test the crab’s dietary preferences, the four prey species were offered either separately or at the same time. All prey species as well as the crabs were collected on the island of Texel in the Dutch Wadden Sea.