Abstract
The reproductive cycle of the field crab Paratelphusa hydrodromous (Herbst) was determined by direct field observations as well as by calculating the percentage of ovigerous females in a Madras population for a period of three years. The females breed annually in a single spawning. These observations, corroborated by histological studies on the nature of the ovary, indicate that gametogenic activity starts in December and vitellogenesis is completed during January-May. Spawning commences in the last week of June or first week of July with the release of brood in the month of September (1979), October (1978) or November (1980) during northeast monsoon. The smallest female crab showing spawning had a carapace width of 3.1 cm and the largest spawning crabs measured 5.5 mm. The mean number of eggs spawned in the smallest crab was 247 and that in the largest crab was 417. Mean incubation was 41 ± 12.388 days. Vitellogenesis and spawning occurred at peak temperature conditions. Though the time taken for vitellogenesis and commencement of spawning were constant for the study period, the duration of retention of the juveniles in the brood varied with the onset of monsoon.
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Kumara Pillai, C., Subramoniam, T. Monsoon-dependent breeding in the field crab Paratelphusa hydrodromous (Herbst). Hydrobiologia 119, 7–14 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00016859
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00016859