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Reproductive Biology of Female Mud Crab, Scylla Olivacea Collected From a South-Western Coastal Sub-District, Bangladesh

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Abstract

Mud crab is one of the prime exported commodities in Bangladesh’s fisheries sector, gaining popularity over time. The biological information particularly the reproductive aspects are essential for managing a fishery. The present study focused on the development consequences of the female ovary, maturity size, and the breeding seasons of the female mud crabs. Female crabs (n = 254) were collected from January to December 2019 from the rivers associated with the Sundarbans mangroves of a southwestern coastal sub-district, Dacope, Khulna, Bangladesh. The development of the ovary was examined based on the external and internal observation of the abdomen and the ovary. In external observation, the result showed that the immature, intermediate, and mature stage crabs were 14%, 18%, and 68% respectively. Based on the internal observation of the ovary, the ovarian progress was classified into five stages Undeveloped (Stage A), Developing (Stage B), Early maturing (Stage C), Late mature (Stage D), and Mature (Stage E). The sampled crabs were 43%, 22%, 16%, 9%, and 9% in stages A, B, C, D, and E respectively. Female crabs started to reach maturity at 69.89 mm Internal Carapace Width (ICW) and 50% of females matured at 76.96 mm ICW. The mean GSI values were highest (> 10%) at the size 90–99 mm ICW size group. Mature females were found all year-round and this is evidence of females having activated ovaries throughout the sampling period. The higher frequency of vitellogenic ovaries and higher GSI values from October to February indicated the prolongate peak breeding season of the species. The present study suggested that though the restricted seasons of mud crab fishing by the Government lie in the peak breeding season, the restricted crab size also needs to impose for the sustainability of this important commodity.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the grant for advanced research study in education (GARE), Ministry of Education, the People’s Republic of Bangladesh which financially supported the present. We also thank the crab collectors who gave us support by collecting the mud crabs all year round.

Funding

Grant for advanced research in education (GARE), Ministry of Education, the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jashore University of Science and Technology, Jashore, 7408, Bangladesh

    Md. Sherazul Islam, Abdul Kader, Prianka Paul & Sharmin Nahar

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  1. Md. Sherazul Islam
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Correspondence to Md. Sherazul Islam.

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Islam, M.S., Kader, A., Paul, P. et al. Reproductive Biology of Female Mud Crab, Scylla Olivacea Collected From a South-Western Coastal Sub-District, Bangladesh. Thalassas 39, 807–816 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41208-023-00536-7

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