Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Population and Reproductive Characteristics of the Hermit Crab Pagurus brachiomastus (Thallwitz, 1892) (Decapoda: Paguridae) from Peter the Great Bay, the Sea of Japan

  • ORIGINAL PAPERS
  • Published:
Russian Journal of Marine Biology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The population and reproductive characteristics of the hermit crab Pagurus brachiomastus (Thallwitz, 1892) have been examined in Vostok Bay (Peter the Great Bay, Sea of Japan). The average population density of P. brachiomastus was lowest in the spring (2.4 ± 0.6 ind./m2) and highest (3.1 ± 0.4 ind./m2) in the summer; the biomass was 18.24 ± 3.75 and 22.83 ± 2.80 g/m2, respectively. Hermit crabs were found throughout the depth range from 0 to 12 m, but were most numerous at a depth of approximately 5–6 m, with an average population density of 8.3 ± 3.7 ind./m2 and a biomass of 39.09 ± 8.51 g/m2 in the summer. The shield length of males varied from 1.3 to 10.3 mm (on average, 5.3 ± 2.2 mm), that of females varied from 1.3 to 10.6 mm (on average, 4.3 ± 1.5 mm), and that of ovigerous females varied from 1.5 to 8.4 mm (on average, 4.4 ± 1.5 mm). The male to female ratio varied from 0.8 to 3.3 during the observation period, with an average of 1.7. Spawning continued from March through August. The proportion of ovigerous females increased from 8.5% in March to 82.8% in May; embryos in clutches remained in the early stage of development until the second 10-day period of May. Egg development was resumed when the water temperature reached 10°C. Breeding was asynchronous: in June–August, females with late-stage embryos and females with recently laid eggs were observed, indicating the possibility of repeated spawning. The data we obtained showed that the favorable coexistence of P. brachiomastus with other sympatric species in the study area is provided by the spatial dissociation of their clusters and differences in size characteristics, as well as the presence of an embryonic diapause in egg development in part of the females and the possibility of repeated spawning.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 6.
Fig. 7.

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  1. Alekseev, V.R., Diapauza rakoobraznykh. Ekologo-fiziologicheskie aspekty (Diapause in Crustaceans: Ecological and Physiological Aspects), Moscow: Nauka, 1990.

  2. Volvenko, I.V., Mekhanizmy regulyatsii dinamiki chislennosti i produktsionnaya biologiya rakov-otshel’nikov (Mechanisms of Regulation of Abundance Dynamics and Reproductive Biology of Hermit Crabs), Vladivostok: Dal’nauka, 1995.

  3. Kornienko, E.S. and Korn, O.M., A key for the identification of the zoeae of common species of hermit crabs (Decapoda: Paguroidea) of Vostok Bay, the Sea of Japan, Russ. J. Mar. Biol., 2016, vol. 42, no. 5, pp. 419–426.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Kornienko, E.S., Korn, O.M., and Selin, N.I., The parasitic fauna of common species of hermit crabs of Vostok Bay (Sea of Japan), Russ. J. Mar. Biol., 2018, vol. 44, no. 2, pp. 94–99.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Makarov, V.V., Anomura, in Fauna SSSR. T. 10. Rakoobraznye (Fauna of the USSR, vol. 10: Crustaceans), Moscow: Akad. Nauk SSSR, 1938, no 3.

  6. Marin, I.N. and Kornienko, E.S., The list of Decapoda species from Vostok Bay Sea of Japan, Biota Sreda Zapov. Dal’nego Vostoka, 2014, no. 2, pp. 49–71.

  7. Selin, N.I., Kornienko, E.S., and Korn, O.M., The species composition and pattern of distribution of hermit crabs (Decapoda: Paguroidea) in Vostok Bay, Sea of Japan, Russ. J. Mar. Biol., 2016, vol. 42, no. 6, pp. 481–488.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Stepanov, V.V., Characterization of temperature and salinity of water in Vostok Bay, Sea of Japan, in Biologicheskie issledovaniya zaliva Vostok (Biological Investigations in Vostok Bay), Vladivostok: Dal’nevost. Nauch. Tsentr, Akad. Nauk SSSR, 1976, pp. 12–22.

  9. Abrams, P.A., Resource partitioning and interspecific competition in a tropical hermit crab community, Oecologia, 1980, vol. 46, pp. 365–379.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Asakura, A., Population ecology of the sand-dwelling hermit crab Diogenes nitidimanus. IV. Larval settlement, Mar. Ecol.: Prog. Ser., 1991, vol. 78, pp. 139–146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Carlon, D. and Ebersole, J.P., Life-history variation among three temperate hermit crabs: the importance of size in reproductive strategies, Biol. Bull., 1995, vol. 188, pp. 329–337.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Fotheringham, N. and Bagnal, A., Seasonal variation in the occurrence of planktonic larvae of sympatric hermit crabs, J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol., 1976, vol. 21, pp. 279–287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Gherardi, F. and Cassidy, P.M., Life history patterns of Discorsopagurus schmitti, a hermit crab inhabiting polychaete tubes, Biol. Bull., 1995, vol. 188, no. 1, pp. 68–77.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Gherardi, F. and Nardone, F., The question of coexistence in hermit crabs: population ecology of a tropical intertidal assemblage, Crustaceana, 1997, vol. 70, no. 5, pp. 608–629.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Imazu, M. and Asakura, A., Distribution, reproduction and shell utilization patterns in three species of intertidal hermit crabs on a rocky shore on the Pacific coast of Japan, J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol., 1994, vol. 184, pp. 41–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Jung, J., Systematic study of the superfamily Paguroidea (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura) from Korea, Ph.D./Sc.D. Theses, Seoul: Dept. of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, 2017. http://s-space.snu.ac.kr/handle/10371/137154?mode=full

    Google Scholar 

  17. Komai, T., The identity of Pagurus brachiomastus and description of two new species of Pagurus (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Paguridae) from the Northwestern Pacific, Species Diversity, 2000, vol. 5, pp. 229–265.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Komai, T., Saito, Y., and Myorin, E., A new species of the hermit crab genus Pagurus Fabricius, 1775 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Paguridae) from shallow coastal waters in Japan, with a checklist of the East Asian species of the genus, Zootaxa, 2015, vol. 3918, pp. 224–238.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Konishi, K. and Quintana, R., The larval stages of Pagurus brachiomastus (Thallwitz, 1892) (Crustacea: Anomura) reared in the laboratory, Zool. Sci., 1987, vol. 4, pp. 349–365.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Korn, O.M., Kornienko, E.S., and Selin, N.I., Population biology and reproductive characteristics of the hermit crab Pagurus minutus Hess, 1865 (Decapoda: Anomura: Paguridae) in the northern part of the species range (Peter the Great Bay, the Sea of Japan), Mar. Biol. Res., 2018, vol. 14, no. 8, pp. 846–855.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Kornienko, E.S., Selin, N.I., and Korn, O.M., Population and reproductive characteristics of the hermit crab Pagurus proximus Komai, 2000 (Decapoda: Anomura: Paguridae) in the northern part of the species range, J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U. K., 2017. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0025315417001679

  22. Kostina, E.E. and Tsurpalo, A.P., Species composition and distribution of macrobenthos in the intertidal zone of Kunashir Island (South Kurile Islands), Russia, Publ. Seto Mar. Biol. Lab., 2016, vol. 44, pp. 53–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Lancaster, I., Reproduction and life history strategy of the hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus, J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U. K., 1990, vol. 70, pp. 129–142.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Martinelli, J.M., Mantelatto, F.L.M., and Fransozo, A., Population structure and breeding season of the South Atlantic hermit crab, Loxopagurus loxochelis (Anomura, Diogenidae) from the Ubatuba region, Brazil, Crustaceana, 2002, vol. 75, no. 6, pp. 791–802.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. McDermott, J.J., Williams, J.D., and Boyko, C.B., The unwanted guests of hermits: a global review of the diversity and natural history of hermit crab parasites, J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol., 2010, vol. 394, pp. 2–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Oba, T. and Goshima, S., Temporal and spatial settlement patterns of sympatric hermit crabs and the influence of shell resource availability, Mar. Biol., 2004, vol. 144, pp. 871–879.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Oba, T., Wada, S., and Goshima, S., Shell partitioning of two sympatric hermit crabs, Pagurus middendorffii and P. brachiomastus, in north-eastern Hokkaido, Japan, J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U. K., 2008, vol. 88, no. 1, pp. 103–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Reese, E.S., Annual breeding seasons of three sympatric species of tropical intertidal hermit crabs, with a discussion of factors controlling breeding, J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol., 1968, vol. 2, pp. 308–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Sultana, Z. and Asakura, A., The complete larval development of Pagurus lanuginosus De Haan, 1849 (Decapoda, Anomura, Paguridae) reared in the laboratory, with emphasis on the post-larval stage, Zootaxa, 2015, vol. 3915, no. 2, pp. 206–232.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Tudge, C.C., Asakura, A., and Ahyong, S.T., Infraorder Anomura MacLeay, 1838, in The Crustacea, Leiden: Brill, 2012, vol. 9, part B, pp. 221–335.

  31. Turra, A. and Leite, F.P.P., Population biology and growth of three sympatric species of intertidal hermit crabs in southeastern Brazil, J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U. K., 2000, vol. 80, pp. 1061–1069.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Vance, R.R., Competition and mechanism of coexistence in three sympatric species of intertidal hermit crabs, Ecology, 1972, vol. 53, pp. 1062–1074.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Wada, S., Reproductive characters and population structure of the subtidal hermit crab Pagurus ochotensis (Anomura: Paguridae), Benthos Res., 2001, vol. 56, no. 1, pp. 43–46.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Wada, S., Kitaoka, H., and Goshima, S., Reproduction of the hermit crab Pagurus lanuginosus and comparison of reproductive traits among sympatric species, J. Crustacean Biol., 2000, vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 474–478.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Wada, S. and Mima, A., Reproductive characters of the hermit crab Pagurus proximus Komai, 2000 in Hakodate Bay, southern Hokkaido, Japan, Crustacean Res., 2003, vol. 32, pp. 73–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Wada, S., Mima, A., and Ito, A., Reproductive phenology of sympatric hermit crabs in temperate Japan, J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U. K., 2005, vol. 85, pp. 889–894.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Wada, S., Sonoda, T., and Goshima, S., Temporal size covariation of mating pairs of the hermit crab Pagurus middendorffii (Decapoda: Anomura: Paguridae) during a single breeding season, Crustacean Res., 1996, vol. 25, pp. 158–164.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Wenner, A.M., Sex ratio as a function of size in marine crustacea, Am. Nat., 1972, vol. 106, pp. 321−350.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Williams, J.D. and Boyko, C.B., The global diversity of parasitic isopods associated with crustacean hosts (Isopoda: Bopyroidea and Cryptoniscoidea), PLoS One, 2012, vol. 7, no. 4, art. ID e35350, pp. 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0035350

  40. Yoshino, K., Goshima, S., and Nakao, S., Temporal reproductive patterns within a breeding season of the hermit crab Pagurus filholi: effects of crab size and shell species, Mar. Biol., 2002, vol. 141, pp. 1069–1075.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors are grateful to their colleagues O.M. Korn and D.D. Golubinskaya from the National Scientific Center of Marine Biology (the Far East Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences) for help with processing the material.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Scientific Center of Marine Biology, Far East Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 690041, Vladivostok, Russia

    E. S. Kornienko & N. I. Selin

Authors
  1. E. S. Kornienko
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. N. I. Selin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to E. S. Kornienko.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interests. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Statement on the welfare of animals. All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

Additional information

Translated by T. Koznova

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kornienko, E.S., Selin, N.I. The Population and Reproductive Characteristics of the Hermit Crab Pagurus brachiomastus (Thallwitz, 1892) (Decapoda: Paguridae) from Peter the Great Bay, the Sea of Japan. Russ J Mar Biol 45, 174–184 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074019030088

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074019030088

Keywords:

Search

Navigation