Three removal experiments were conducted to test the effects of the introduced species, Bugula neritina, Ascidiella aspersa and Botryllus schlosseri on sessile invertebrate assemblages. Each experiment was run for approximately 2 months between 28th November 2004 and 13th February 2004. These experiments involved removing the introduced species from plates and then comparing these assemblages to those on disturbed control and control plates, where the introduced species had not been removed. The introduced species were removed by scraping them and surrounding species from the surface in 1/8 or 1/4 cm2 areas or by peeling individuals off with forceps. All individuals on the plates were counted and identified at the completion of the experiments.

This experiment was conducted to determine if an established Botryllus schlosseri colony affected the recruitment of sessile invertebrates. Small perspex plates that had been in the field for 8 weeks and then in a laboratory water table were used to test this hypothesis. Treatment plates were scraped of all organisms expect for the B. schlosseri colonies. Control and 'mimic' plates were scraped of all organisms. Mimic B. schlosseri were made from silicone and used to determine if the effects were due to the physical structure of the organism or biological attributes (e.g. post-settlement overgrowth or chemical defence mechanisms). Plates were suspended from Workshops Jetty, Williamstown for 10 days (2nd March to 12th March 2004) before being collected. At the conclusion of the experiment all species found on the plates were counted and identified.

An experiment was conducted to compare the effects of the introduced bryozoan, Bugula neritina, and the native bryozoan, Bugula dentata, on sessile invertebrate assemblages. Individuals of both species were collected from Workshops Jetty and Altona Pier prior to the experiment and transported back to the laboratory. Two colonies of either B. neritina or B. dentata were attached to each plate using sponges that expanded when wet. The plates were then transported to Workshops Jetty and attached to plates and left for 12 days. At the conclusion of the experiment plates were collected and abundances of species on the plates were counted and identified.

Field surveys undertaken between 2006 and 2009 have been compiled to provide an extensive baseline of the distribution and abundance of rock lobster species from the Muiron Islands in the north to Turtles sanctuary in the south of Ningaloo Marine Park. The abundance of lobsters of all species were low, however there were regions that held significantly higher abundances of lobsters. The geographic regions and habitats types in which lobsters were found varied with lobster species.

Metadata record for data expected from ASAC Project 2163 See the link below for public details on this project. Records of observations of kelp rafts passing within 50 m of one side of the vessel over replicated periods of 1 hour. Data collected over subantarctic latitudes only. Records include: size, species, presence/absence of holdfast, latitude and longitude, ship speed.

Exclusions were attached to artificial substrata to investigate the relative effects of predation on the development of epifaunal communities at Portsea. Exclusions were black plastic mesh cages enclosing panels that were attached to rigs under the Portsea Pier. Bare control panels and cage controls where included in the experimental design. Cage controls had the bottom and half of the roof on the cage removed. There were 2 replicate panels of each treatment that were immersed for 2, 4 or 7 months and there were 6 runs of the experiment from October 1975 to November 1977. At the conclusion of each run of the experiment the panels were fixed in 4% formalin-seawater solution. In the laboratory, the number of individuals and percent cover of colonial species on each panel were recorded. Surveys identified that grazing fish were the most abundant predator of the epifaunal community at Portsea during the experiment. Predation significantly affected the pattern of establishment of the epifaunal community. There were fewer ascidian recruits and more diverse communities on bare control panels because fish predation prevented monopolisation of space by dominant ascidian competitors. On caged panels were there was no fish grazing, the survival of colonial ascidians was greater and the panels were dominated by arborescent bryozoans and ascidians.

This study examined the impacts of 2 of the most common epibenthic suspension feeders, Sabella spallanzanii and Styela clava, in Port Phillip Bay, by transplanting individuals from the surrounding habitat into 2 x 2m experimental plots. Densities in the plots represented naturally occurring densities, ranging from 0.5 to 10 individuals per m-2 for Sabella and from 0.5 to 5 individuals per m-2 for Styela. At the completion of the 10 week experimental period the numbers of alive and dead Sabella and Styela in each plot were counted. The infauna in each plot was sampled by inserting 2 metal cylinders to a depth of 15cm into each plot. The sediment within each cylinder was vacuumed to a depth of 10cm into a 1mm mesh bag using a diver-operated, water-driven suction device. The total area in each plot that was sampled was 0.2m2 (cylinder diameter = 35.5cm). Macrofauna were counted and identified in the laboratory to the lowest possible taxon, which was mostly Family. There were significant effects on individual taxa at Sabella and Styela densities greater than 1-2 individuals per m-2, which are densities greater than those typically recorded in Port Phillip Bay. There was a significant negative relationship between Sabella density and the abundance of lumbrinerid polychaetes and gammarid amphipods, and between Styela density and the abundance of lumbrinerids, tanaids, crustaceans as a group, and the bivalve Laternula rostrata.

A manipulative field experiment was used to assess the spatial variation in the effect of copper on sessile invertebrates within a marina in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. Sessile invertebrate assemblages were grown on perspex plates for 6 weeks and then dosed with plaster blocks impregnated with copper sulfate. After 1 week of exposure to the copper the plates were collected and the numbers of sponges, polychaetes, barnacles, bryozoans and ascidians were counted on each plate. The variation in abundances of individual taxa were estimated at spatial scales of metres. Water flow was measured as a possible explanation for the variation in the effects of copper. Three of the 20 sessile invertebrates species showed significant small scale variation in the effect of copper. The effects of copper on these species varied in magnitude and direction. Water flow did not explain the variation in the effects of copper. It is suggested that variations in organic or inorganic compounds or in pH levels may provide alternative explanations for the spatially variable effects of copper in the marina.

This data was collected to investigate the relationship between human activities and size distribution of gastropods on rocky shores. It was predicted that there would be a negative correlation between the level of human activity and the average size of gastropod species such as Cellana tramoserica, Austrocochlea constricta, Turbo undulata, Thais orbita and Nerita atramentosa, which are collected by humans for bait and occasionally for food. Sampling was undertaken in May 1990 and February/March 1991 at 6 locations within the Bunurong Marine Park, Victoria. On each sampling occasion the size of 100 snails of each species was measured at each site.