Fisheries Resources Research Center, National Institute of Fisheries Science, Tongyeong, 56034, Korea.
Division of Fisheries Life Sciences, Pukyong National University, Busan, 48513, Korea.
Sci Rep. 2024 Aug 29;14(1):20137. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-70959-6.
The sex-specific differences in the growth and population characteristics of the high-commercial-value sand crab Ovalipes punctatus were investigated in Korea. The estimated allometric growth between the sexes showed significant differences in all morphometric measurements. In the classification of growth types, carapace width-chela length exhibited positive and negative allometric growth in males and females, respectively. Carapace width-abdominal width showed positive relative growth in both sexes, and orbital spine width exhibited negative relative growth in both sexes. Consequently, sexual dimorphism was evident in all measured traits. Growth parameters estimated using the ELEFAN function of the FiSAT II program indicated higher values in males compared to females. Asymptotic length (CW) for males was estimated at 139.2 mm, whereas for females it was 116.6 mm. Additionally, the growth coefficient (K) was higher in males (0.65) than in females (0.54), suggesting faster growth in males. The winter point (WP) was 1 for males and 0.7 for females, indicating slower growth in males during the colder December and slower growth in females during the spawning period in August. The modified von Bertalanffy growth curves indicated asymptotic growth in all sexes, and the growth performance index (φ') showed higher values in males (4.10) compared to females (3.87), reflecting differences in growth curves. The steady increase in recruitment rates from July to September was associated with the appearance of larvae and their subsequent growth into juveniles, leading to their recruitment into the population during this period. Therefore, O. punctatus exhibited sex-specific differences in growth parameters, suggesting distinct growth strategies between the sexes.
韩国研究了高商业价值沙蟹 Ovalipes punctatus 的性别特异性生长和种群特征差异。雌雄之间的估计异速生长在所有形态测量学指标上均存在显著差异。在生长类型分类中，甲壳宽-螯长在雄性和雌性中分别表现出正异速生长和负异速生长。甲壳宽-腹部宽在两性中均表现出正相对生长，眶后刺宽在两性中均表现出负相对生长。因此，所有测量特征均表现出明显的性别二型性。使用 FiSAT II 程序的 ELEFAN 函数估计的生长参数表明雄性的值高于雌性。雄性的渐近体长（CW）估计为 139.2 毫米，而雌性为 116.6 毫米。此外，雄性的生长系数（K）（0.65）高于雌性（0.54），表明雄性生长更快。雄性的冬季点（WP）为 1，雌性为 0.7，表明雄性在 12 月较冷时生长较慢，雌性在 8 月繁殖期生长较慢。修正的 von Bertalanffy 生长曲线表明所有性别均存在渐近生长，生长表现指数（φ'）雄性（4.10）高于雌性（3.87），反映了生长曲线的差异。从 7 月到 9 月，由于幼虫的出现及其随后的生长为幼体，导致它们在此期间被招募到种群中，因此，招募率稳步增加。因此，O. punctatus 在生长参数上表现出性别特异性差异，表明两性之间存在明显的生长策略。
