a b s t r a c tThe pink shrimp Farfantepenaeus paulensis is one of the most commercially exploited species in Brazil's South and Southeastern regions. Specific information about the status of its genetic variation is necessary to promote more effective management procedures. The genetic variation of the population of F. paulensis was investigated in five localities along southern and southeastern coast of Brazil. Sampling was performed with a commercial fishing boat. Total genomic DNA was extracted from abdominal muscle tissues and was used to DNA amplification by PCR. The COI gene was used as a DNA barcoding marker. The 570 bp COI gene sequences were obtained from all 45 individuals. The haplotype network showed no genetic variability among the population stocks, which was confirmed by Molecular Variance Analysis. The final alignment showed that inside species there is haplotype sharing among the sampled localities, since one haplotype is shared by 38 individuals belonging to all the five sampled regions, with no biogeographic pattern. This result is reasonable since there are no geographical barriers or habitat disjunction that might serve as a barrier to gene flow among the sampled localities. Possible reasons and consequences of the genetic homogeneity found are discussed. The results complement ecological studies concerning the offseason: since it is a single stock, the same protection strategy can be applied. However, the genetic homogeneity found in this study combined with the intensive fishery effort and the species biology can result in severe consequences for the F. paulensis.

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Macrobrachium amazonicum is a commercially important freshwater prawn with a high degree of reproductive plasticity. The species is classified into two groups: coastal populations, with larger individuals exhibiting high fecundity and needing brackish water for larval development; and continental populations, with smaller specimens exhibiting low fecundities and completing metamorphosis in freshwater. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of environmental factors in the fecundity, egg size and volume, and reproductive output in females of M. amazonicum from a continental population during a two-year period. We also compared our results with those obtained for other continental and coastal populations. Reproductive parameters differed markedly between continental and coastal populations in most cases. The continental population studied here, however, exhibited reproductive characteristics similar to those of coastal populations. The present study found a correlation between the reproductive parameters and the environmental variables analyzed. This result corroborates the hypothesis that wide variation in reproductive parameters in the geographical distribution of M. amazonicum is related to the environmental characteristics in which populations are inserted. We suggest that further studies could investigate the potential of continental populations for aquaculture, which could significantly reduce production costs.

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