Population structure and breeding period of Pachycheles monilifer (Dana) (Anomura, Porcellanidae) inhabiting sabellariid sand reefs from the littoral coast of São Paulo State, Brazil
Abstract:ABSTRACT. The purpose of the present study is to examine the population structure and the breeding period of Pachycheles lIIonilifer (Dana, 1852) inhabiting sabellariid worm reefs in the littoral of Sao Paulo State coast. The specimens were obtained at 2-month intervals from Seplember/94 to July/95. The study sites were located at the rocky shores ofTen6rio and Paranapua Beaches. Individuals sampled showed a total averaged 4.4 ± 1.4 mm carapace length. Ovigerous females were more frequent in September. Despit… Show more
“…In the flattened porcelain crab, chelae are used for defense and reproduction functions, but do not employ for feeding (Barnard, 1950;Rypien and Palmer, 2007). On the other hand, broadness of the females abdomen is useful to perform its function for carrying and protecting incubated eggs and helps maintain the continuous circulation of oxygenated water over the eggs carried on her underside (Hartnoll, 1974;Schembri, 1982 Fouda, 2000) and agrees well with that mentioned by Ahmed and Mustaquim (1974) on the same species collected from Manora Island, Karachi, Pakistan, where gravid females appear annually from January to November, and with those recorded from subtropical (Fransozo and Bertini, 2001) and temperate decapods (Schembri, 1982).…”
Section: Discussionsupporting
confidence: 62%
“…Porcelain crabs are much alike true crabs (brachyurans) but they can easily distinguished from them by possessing uropods and their small, dorsally directed 5 th pair (last walking pairs) of legs under the carapace (Barnard, 1950;Fransozo and Bertini, 2001; Osawa and McLaughlin, 2010). These crabs belong to family Porcellanidae Haworth, 1825 (Anomura: Decapoda), which comprises about 27 to 30 genera including from 225 to 277 species (Melo, 1999;Fransozo and Bertini, 2001; Osawa and McLaughlin, 2010), most of them are worldwide in distribution, occupying a variety of littoral habitats living in hard substrates within crevices or under boulders and even in bottom covered by calcareous algae, excepting rare species living in the deep sea (Veloso and Melo, 1993).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…These crabs belong to family Porcellanidae Haworth, 1825 (Anomura: Decapoda), which comprises about 27 to 30 genera including from 225 to 277 species (Melo, 1999;Fransozo and Bertini, 2001; Osawa and McLaughlin, 2010), most of them are worldwide in distribution, occupying a variety of littoral habitats living in hard substrates within crevices or under boulders and even in bottom covered by calcareous algae, excepting rare species living in the deep sea (Veloso and Melo, 1993).…”
The reproductive biology of the porcelain crab Petrolisthes rufescens (Heller, 1861) population at Ain Sukhna (62 km south Suez City) was studied during the period from April 2000 to May 2001. Sexual dimorphism was determined based on morphological differences between sexes. Abdomen is semi-circular with four pairs of biramous appendages in females, but tapering with only two pairs of unequal uniramous appendages (pleopds) in males. Size at first maturity was determined using allometric growth occurring at puberty from the relationships between male's 2 nd pleopodal length and chelae length against carapace length (C.L.) and by the appearance of distinctive ovaries in females. Overall sex ratio for this crab species was 1: 0.70 males to females, with highly significant Chi-square value (X 2 = 7.486, P< 0.05, df =1). It was not constant throughout the year particularly during breeding seasons, showing highly significant Chi-square value (X 2 = 20.185, df= 25, P < 0.05). Based on the appearance of ovigerous females, the breeding of P. rufescens is lengthy, start often at late winter and early spring and extends through summer to early autumn. Incubated eggs are oval or semi-oval, sometimes elliptical with polygonal surfaces, and varied in size from 400 to 1000 m with an average of 640 ± 105 m. These eggs are passed through five stages of maturation, and showed remarkably gradual decreasing in size throughout the period of incubation, reaching the minimum at last stages (stage V or the releasing larvae). The color of incubated eggs is also changed from bright yellow in newly laid eggs to grey at the last stage of development. The fecundity of ovigerous females was relatively low, varied from 35 to 450 with an average of 208 ± 92 eggs /female crab. It was correlated by a curvilinear relationship with carapace length only.
“…In the flattened porcelain crab, chelae are used for defense and reproduction functions, but do not employ for feeding (Barnard, 1950;Rypien and Palmer, 2007). On the other hand, broadness of the females abdomen is useful to perform its function for carrying and protecting incubated eggs and helps maintain the continuous circulation of oxygenated water over the eggs carried on her underside (Hartnoll, 1974;Schembri, 1982 Fouda, 2000) and agrees well with that mentioned by Ahmed and Mustaquim (1974) on the same species collected from Manora Island, Karachi, Pakistan, where gravid females appear annually from January to November, and with those recorded from subtropical (Fransozo and Bertini, 2001) and temperate decapods (Schembri, 1982).…”
Section: Discussionsupporting
confidence: 62%
“…Porcelain crabs are much alike true crabs (brachyurans) but they can easily distinguished from them by possessing uropods and their small, dorsally directed 5 th pair (last walking pairs) of legs under the carapace (Barnard, 1950;Fransozo and Bertini, 2001; Osawa and McLaughlin, 2010). These crabs belong to family Porcellanidae Haworth, 1825 (Anomura: Decapoda), which comprises about 27 to 30 genera including from 225 to 277 species (Melo, 1999;Fransozo and Bertini, 2001; Osawa and McLaughlin, 2010), most of them are worldwide in distribution, occupying a variety of littoral habitats living in hard substrates within crevices or under boulders and even in bottom covered by calcareous algae, excepting rare species living in the deep sea (Veloso and Melo, 1993).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…These crabs belong to family Porcellanidae Haworth, 1825 (Anomura: Decapoda), which comprises about 27 to 30 genera including from 225 to 277 species (Melo, 1999;Fransozo and Bertini, 2001; Osawa and McLaughlin, 2010), most of them are worldwide in distribution, occupying a variety of littoral habitats living in hard substrates within crevices or under boulders and even in bottom covered by calcareous algae, excepting rare species living in the deep sea (Veloso and Melo, 1993).…”
The reproductive biology of the porcelain crab Petrolisthes rufescens (Heller, 1861) population at Ain Sukhna (62 km south Suez City) was studied during the period from April 2000 to May 2001. Sexual dimorphism was determined based on morphological differences between sexes. Abdomen is semi-circular with four pairs of biramous appendages in females, but tapering with only two pairs of unequal uniramous appendages (pleopds) in males. Size at first maturity was determined using allometric growth occurring at puberty from the relationships between male's 2 nd pleopodal length and chelae length against carapace length (C.L.) and by the appearance of distinctive ovaries in females. Overall sex ratio for this crab species was 1: 0.70 males to females, with highly significant Chi-square value (X 2 = 7.486, P< 0.05, df =1). It was not constant throughout the year particularly during breeding seasons, showing highly significant Chi-square value (X 2 = 20.185, df= 25, P < 0.05). Based on the appearance of ovigerous females, the breeding of P. rufescens is lengthy, start often at late winter and early spring and extends through summer to early autumn. Incubated eggs are oval or semi-oval, sometimes elliptical with polygonal surfaces, and varied in size from 400 to 1000 m with an average of 640 ± 105 m. These eggs are passed through five stages of maturation, and showed remarkably gradual decreasing in size throughout the period of incubation, reaching the minimum at last stages (stage V or the releasing larvae). The color of incubated eggs is also changed from bright yellow in newly laid eggs to grey at the last stage of development. The fecundity of ovigerous females was relatively low, varied from 35 to 450 with an average of 208 ± 92 eggs /female crab. It was correlated by a curvilinear relationship with carapace length only.
“…FRANSOZO & BERTINI (2001) identified some porcellanid species that present seasonal reproduction, and others that breed throughout the year. Petrolisthes boscii (Audovim, 1826), P. rufescens (Heller, 1861), P. elongatus (H. Milne Edwards, 1837), and P. vanderhorsli Haig, 1956 are all known to reproduce seasonally in some parts of the world (LEWIS 1960, WEAR 1965, AHMED & MUSTAQUIM 1974.…”
“…A maioria é proveniente de águas costeiras, litorâneas e sublitorâneas, habitando entre algas, corais, esponjas, fissuras de rochas e sob pedras, sendo raro o seu registro em grandes profundidades (Rodriguez, 1980;Veloso, 1999). Os porcelanídeos também são encontrados em associação com outros organismos, por exemplo, habitando galerias do poliqueto Phragmatopoma lapidosa Kimberg (1867) e sendo parasitados pelo isópode Aporobopyrus curtatus (Richardson, 1904) (Pinheiro et al, 1997;Oliveira & Masunari, 1998;Micheletti-Flores & Negreiros-Fransozo, 1999;Fransozo & Bertini, 2001;Miranda & Mantelatto, 2010).…”
The life cycle of these species includes only two zoeal stages, which are distinctive by their very elongate rostral and posterolateral carapace spines, and are commonly found in estuarine meroplanktonic samples. The present study provides information about the abundance of porcellanid larvae at an estuarine system in the Amazon coastal zone, aiming to understand their distribution in relation to some physicochemical variables: seasonal, diel, tidal and lunar cycles, temperature and salinity. Samples were collected monthly from April 2000 to April 2001 with a plankton conical net with 300μm of mesh size, by horizontal hauls, in the Caeté River estuary, Pará, Brazil. Only zoeal stages of porcellanid larvae were found. In general, their abundance was greater in dry season (8.08±11.43 larvae.m -3 ) in relation to rainy season (0.99±3.13 larvae.m -3 ), and flood tide (7.52±11.40 larvae.m -3 ) in relation to ebb tide (1.11±2.14 larvae.m -3 ). Greater densities were also registered at higher degrees of salinity. The other variables, moon phases, diel cycle and temperature, had not a significant influence on porcellanid larval abundance in the Caeté River estuary.
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