Growth pattern of isolated prawns of Macrobrachium borellii (Crustacea, Decapoda, Palaemonidae)

COLLINS P.; PETRIELLA A.

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INVERTEBRATE REPRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT

International Society of Invertebrate Reproduction and Development

Lugar: Balaban; Año: 1999 vol. 36 p. 87 - 91

0168-8170

The aim of  this study is to analyze individual growth of the freshwater prawn MAcrobrachium borellii (Crustacea, Decapoda, Palaemonidae) analyzing pre- and postmolt cephalothorax length data in laboratory-reared animals. An isometric increase of CL was observed in juveniles (slope: 1.01) and a negative allometric for females and males (slope: 0.85 and 0.87, respectively). The duration of intermolt period increases with the size, being linear in juveniles and positively exponential in both sexes. The size increase was larger in males and intermolt period was negatively exponential in all of the groups. Growth by molting decreases with the size in anegatively exponential form. Values for males and females were not statistically different, but juvenile and adult values were. The juveniles phase is marked by a change in the growth level and may be due to the puberty molt. The difference in the male-females allometric level was relatively small and in some cases of uncertain significance.