Maturidade sexual fisiológica em Goniopsis cruentata (Latreille) (Crustacea, Brachyura, Grapsidae) no Estuário do Paripe, Pernambuco, Brasil

Abstract

O presente estudo analisou a maturidade sexual fisiológica de Goniopsis cruentata no estuário do rio Paripe, Pernambuco, Brasil. Os caranguejos foram amostrados mensalmente de agosto 1999 a julho de 2000, com uma aparelho de pesca artezanal e com esforço de pesca de uma hora. Depois da amostragem, todos os indivíduos foram sexados, a largura da carapaça (LC) foi medida e o organismo dissecado para análise macroscópica das gônadas. Foram analisados um total de 664 espécimens (324 machos, 228 fêmeas sem ovos e 112 ovígeras) com a predominância de indivíduos maturos para ambos os sexos. O tamanho em que 50% dos machos apresentam-se fisiologicamente maturos na população amostrada é de 31,64 mm e as fêmeas com 28 mm. A menor fêmea ovígera encontrada mediu 30,5 mm. Para G. cruentata foi observado uma sincronia no início da maturidade sexual para ambos os sexos. Este fato é usualmente encontrado entre os Brachyura, particularmente entre grapsídeos.

Morphology of the female reproductive system of the red-clawed mangrove tree crab (<em>Goniopsis cruentata</em> Latreille, 1803)

“…thus, sexual maturity for female specimens of G. cruentata collected from the Ceará river in northeastern brazil seems to be attained when the CW is approximately 26.4 mm. these findings match observations for specimens sampled in Pernambuco (CW: 28 mm) (Moura and Coelho, 2004), while individuals collected for a study in são Paulo were mature at only 21.0 mm (Cobo and Fransozo, 2005). on the other hand, this is not surprising since the size at sexual maturity has been observed to vary according to geographical distribution (adiyodi, 1988).…”

“…a similar classification has been used for the crab species U. cordatus (santana, 2002). other authors have classified ovary development in G. cruentata based on macroscopic observation alone, as in a study published by Cobo and Fransozo (1998a) considering three maturation stages, and in studies by Moura and Coelho (2004) and by Cobo and Fransozo (2005) proposing a five-stage classification. in the first (previtellogenic) stage of ovary development our specimens had mitotic oocytes in the central germinative zone and, outside this zone, only previtellogenic oocytes organised in cysts, matching findings for the shrimp species Macrobrachium acanthurus (Carvalho and Pereira, 1981); Macrobrachium amazonicum (bragagnoli and Grotta, 1995), for which the stage was given as "immature"; and Artemesia longinaris (dumont and d'incao, 2004), for which the stage was described as "immature" or "previtellogenic", but differing from the crab Ucides cordatus (Mota-alves, 1975), and the spiny lobsters Panulirus laevicauda (Mota-alves and tomé, 1966) and Panulirus argus (Mota and tomé, 1965), which have only oogonia during the first stage of maturation.…”

“…of the gonads, as reported for Araneaus cribrarius (Pinheiro and Fransozo, 1998), Hepatus pudibundus (reigada and negreiros-Fransozo, 2000), Chasmagnathus granulatus (ituarte et al, 2004) and Goniopsis cruentata (Cobo and Fransozo, 1998a;2005;Moura and Coelho, 2004). Microscopic features are rarely used for the purpose of classification.…”

“…in spite of its extensive distribution, few studies on the species' reproductive biology have been published in brazil. exceptions include studies from Pernambuco and são Paulo on physiological sexual maturity (Moura and Coelho, 2004;Cobo and Fransozo, 2005), fecundity (Cobo and Fransozo, 1997;Moura and Coelho, 2003), reproductive period (Cobo and Fransozo, 1998a) and spawning period (Cobo and Fransozo, 2003).…”

The relative growth and sexual maturity of the freshwater crab Dilocarcinus pagei (Brachyura, Trichodactylidae) in the northwestern region of the state of São Paulo

“…The process of sexual maturation in crabs is characterized by morphological and physiological variation and by changes in the social role of individuals in the population, accompanied by changes in the ethological characteristic of different life stages of the species and influencing the occurrence of new habits and behaviors (Hartnoll, 1969;Fernández-Vergaz et al, 2000;Moura & Coelho, 2004). Hartnoll (1974) All individuals were thawed at room temperature before analysis and were sexed using pleon morphology and the number of pleopods (Pinheiro & Taddei, 2005b).…”