Fecundity of Cardisoma Crassum Smith, 1870 in an Estuary of the Mexican Pacific

Abstract

Fecundity in crustaceans is generally defined as the number of eggs produced by a female during<br />spawning season in particular and often expressed in terms of body size. Among the brachyuran<br />there is considerable variation in fertility. This study aimed to estimate fecundity in Cardisoma<br />crassum Smith, 1870 which is important mangrove ecosystem specie as it helps in the process of<br />degradation of organic matter produced by the mangrove forest. A total of 17 ovigerous females<br />were collected, with an average weight of 122.9 ± 32.54 g. The average carapace width was 60.03 ±<br />7.64 mm and 46.97 ± 4.6 mm in length. The ovigerous mass presented an average weight of 11.78 ±<br />2.9 g (fresh weight) and 1.612g ± 0.53 g (dry weight). The average number of eggs was 475457.6 ±<br />117316.8 and 317598.62 ± 116069.60 in fresh and dry weight, respectively. The number of eggs<br />accounted for C. crassum is in the range of eggs produced by other gecarcinides.

Segregation by size in the mouthless crab Cardisoma crassum (Brachyura: Gecarcinidae) from Ponuga, Veraguas, Panama

“…Although C. crassum is an important fishery resource for coastal human settlements in Panama (Vega et al 2018), little effort has been made to determine its distribution patterns and understand the factors affecting it. This is especially important because mouthless crabs can favor or restrict specific plant species recruitment through herbivory (Vargas-Téllez & Vázquez-López, 2020;Alemán & Ordinola, 2017), as well as play a critical role in the structure of mangrove forests (Smith, 1987;Smith et al 1989;Wolcott & O'Connor, 1992;Lindquist et al 2009).…”