Comparison of body size, relative growth and size at onset sexual maturity of Uca uruguayensis (Crustacea, Decapoda, Ocypodidae) from different latitudes in the south-western Atlantic

GUSTAVO LUIS HIROSE; VIVIAN FRANSOZO; CAROLINA TROPEA; LAURA S. LÓPEZ GRECO; MARIA LUCIA NEGREIROS-FRANSOZO

JOURNAL OF THE MARINE BIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED KINGDOM

CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS

Lugar: Cambridge; Año: 2013 p. 781 - 788

0025-3154

Some crustaceans show variations of their reproductive biology within their geographical distribution, and knowledge of such variations is important for the comprehension of their reproductive adaptations. This study compared two populations of the fiddler crab Uca uruguayensis from two locations on the south-western Atlantic coast: UbatubaBay, São Paulo, Brazil and Samborombón Bay, Buenos Aires, Argentina. The population features analysed were the body size variation (carapace width = CW) and the size at the onset of sexual maturity (SOM) in order to test the hypothesis that the size at onset of maturity (SOM), should be the same in relative terms (RSOM), independently of the latitudinal position. In Brazilian population the CW ranged from 4.18 to 11.60 mm for males and 3.90 to 9.80 mm for females, and in Argentinean population from 3.60 to 14.10 mm for males and 2.85 to 12.00 mm for females. In the Brazilian population the SOM was 7.1 (RSOM= 0.58) and 5.9 mm CW (RSOM=0.57) for males and females, respectively, and in the Argentinean population it was 7.0 (RSOM= 0.42) and 6.75 mm CW (RSOM= 0.53) for males and females, respectively. This fact is probably related to a great plasticity in the life history features of Uca uruguayensis under different environmental conditions.