Hybridization in Australian Freshwater Crayfish—Production of All‐Male Progeny

Abstract

Abstract.— In freshwater crayfish aquaculture high densities can result from uncontrolled reproduction. Hence some farmers manually sex yabbies Cherax albidus and stock only mate crayfish in farm dams or ponds. Although male‐only yabby populations produce an estimated 70% increase in gross income, hand sexing is time consuming and prone to error. A hybridization experiment using freshwater crayfish from the yabby species complex, collected from geographically isolated regions throughout Australia, revealed a hybrid between Cherax rotundus females and C. albidus males which consistently produces only male progeny. This has been confirmed in nine crosses of the same two species. The reciprocal cross of C. albidus females ×C. rotundus males produces both male and female progeny. The consistent production of only male progeny by hybridization has not been recorded previously for a crustacean.

The enigmatic Marmorkrebs (marbled crayfish) is the parthenogenetic form of Procambarus fallax (Hagen, 1870)

“…Furthermore, the experimental hybridisation of the two Australian freshwater crayfish species, Cherax rotundus Clark, 1941 andC. albidus Clark, 1936 did not result in parthenogenesis (Lawrence and Morrissy, 2000).…”

Treatise on Zoology - Anatomy, Taxonomy, Biology. The Crustacea, Volume 9 Part A

“…Hybridization of Cherax rotundus Clark, 1941 females and Cherax albidus males consistently produced only male progeny, whereas the reciprocal cross produced both male and female progeny (Lawrence et al, 2000). This approach is of interest for yabby aquaculture, due to faster growth of the male hybrids.…”

Sex Control in Fish: Approaches, Challenges and Opportunities for Aquaculture

“…Precocious maturation occurs in several farmed species including Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) [1], freshwater crayfish (Cherax destructor) [2] and Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), which have a tendency to sexually mature and reproduce before attaining a body size that is suitable for harvest. This precocious maturation leads to slow growth as energy is diverted into reproduction, creates large variance in product size at harvest and results in overpopulation of ponds and, therefore, an inability to control animal densities and feeding rates.…”