J. Mar. Biol. Ass. U.K. (2002), 82, 597^603 Printed in the United Kingdom Population biology and growth of the hermit crab Dardanus insignis at Armac° a‹ odoItapocoroy,southernBrazil OP Joaquim Olinto Branco*, Alexander Turra and Fla¤ vio Xavier Souto* *Centro de Cie“ nciasTecnolo¤ gicas daTerra e do Mar/CTTMar/UNIVALI, Caixa Postal 360, 88301-970, Itaja|¤, Santa Catarina, Brazil. O Departamento de Zoologia, PG-Ecologia, IB, Unicamp, Campinas, SP, Brazil 13080-970. P Corresponding author, e-mail: [email protected] This study was conducted between January and December 1995 at Armac° a‹ o do Itapocoroy, Penha, Santa Catarina, southern Brazil. Monthly samples were carried out in the morning, afternoon, and evening using two over-trawls with 6 m at the opening, 3.0-cm mesh at the outer part and 2.0-cm mesh in the bag. Dardanus insignis was collected year round but with higher densities in September and October. The hermit crabs were more abundant during the evening than the afternoon but no di¡erences were recorded between morning and both evening and afternoon. Females were slightly more abundant than males but the sex ratio did not di¡er from 1:1. Females were more abundant in the smallest size-classes (51.8 cm) while males outnumbered females in the largest ones (42.2 cm).The individuals of this popula- tion of D. insignis have a mean cephalothoracic length of 1.89 Æ0.40 cm (range 1.00 to 3.90 cm) and a mean weight of 40.26 Æ27.06 g. The size distribution showed an unimodal pattern, with males being larger than ovigerous females, which, in turn, were larger than non-ovigerous females. Dardanus insignis showed a seasonal reproductive pattern with a peak from September to November and complete absence of ovigerous females from April to August. The von Bertalan¡y growth function (VBGF) with temporal oscillation ¢tted for this population of D. insignis had the following parameters: L1¼4.40 cm, K¼0.60, C¼0.95, WP¼0.35. Recruitment was estimated to start in September and was extended to the following months. Estimates of longevity ranged from 20 to 62 months. A mortality rate of 2.21 was estimated based on the length converted catch curve. The cephalothoracic length of males and females showed, respectively, posi- tive and negative allometry with both cephalothoracic width and crab weight. INTRODUCTION (see Turra & Leite, 2000 for a review), the evaluation of population growth was undertaken only for the temperate The studies on populations generally present descrip- hermit crabs Cestopagurus timidus (Roux, 1830) (Manjo¤ n- tions of density, size distribution, dispersion patterns, sex Cabeza & Garc|¤a-Raso, 1994) and Diogenes pugilator ratio and reproductive periods that can be compared to (Roux, 1829) (Manjo¤ n-Cabeza & Garc|¤a-Raso, 1998) and other populations of the same species, genus or other taxo- for the tropical hermit crabs Clibanarius antillensis nomic level. Such comparisons are an important strategy (Stimpson, 1859), Clibanarius sclopetarius (Herbst, 1796) and to verify di¡erences among populations and to under- Clibanarius vittatus (Bosc, 1802) (Turra & Leite, 2000). stand, at least partially, the environmental and/or bio- Dardanus insignis (Saussure, 1858) is an occidental logical constraints that are shaping the structure of these Atlantic oceanic hermit crab occurring in eastern United populations, i.e. the selective forces that are selecting States, Gulf of Mexico, Antilles, Brazil (from Rio de particular populational traits. Moreover, the study of Janeiro to Rio Grande do Sul), Uruguay and Argentina in dominant populations may be very important to elucidate di¡erent substrate types from depths of 1.5 to 500 m the structure and function of communities. (Rieger, 1997). According to Hazlett (1966b), this species Hermit crabs are a very abundant group in macroinver- also occupies worm tubes and had a behavioural repertoire tebrate assemblages in intertidal and subtidal areas very similar to Petrochirus diogenes (Linnaeus, 1758), another (Wenner & Read, 1982; Branco et al., 1998; Martinez- oceanic hermit crab species. The complete description of Iglesias & Garc|¤a-Raso, 1999; Fernades-Go¤ es, 2000).They the larval development of this species enabled its clear are an interesting group of crustaceans that depend almost distinction from Dardanus arrosor (Herbst, 1796) (Hebling exclusively on gastropod shells resources to shelter their soft & Mansur, 1995), a hermit crab species common to north abdomen. The hermit crabs have elaborated shell ¢ghting and north-eastern Brazilian waters (Rieger, 1997). More and mating behaviours (Hazlett, 1966a,b) and may recently, the biology of a tropical population of D. insignis present short or long-range daily movements (Hazlett, was studied by Fernandes-Go¤ es (1997, 2000) in the 1981) and even seasonal migrations (Fotheringham, 1975; Ubatuba region, south-eastern Brazil. Rebach, 1978, 1981; Asakura & Kikuchi, 1984; Asakura, The aim of this study was to describe the population 1987). Seasonality is also recorded for the reproductive structure of the subtidal hermit crab D. insignis at the period of hermit crabs both in temperate and tropical Armac° a‹ o do Itapocoroy, a subtropical area in southern areas (Turra & Leite, 2000). Although a large number of Brazil. In this way, we describe the seasonal and daily studies on population biology have been conducted recently variation in abundance of the studied population as well Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom (2002) 598 J.O. Branco et al. Population biology and growth of Dardanus insignis as its size structure, sex ratio, relative growth and repro- converted catch curve, as proposed by Gayanilo & Pauly ductive period. The monthly data on the population size (1997), based on the parameters of the VBGF. A fourth structure were used to estimate population growth using way to estimate longevity was based on the direct observa- the von Bertalan¡y growth function (VBGF). tion of the oldest cohort in the ¢tted VBGF. The total mortality rate (Z) was estimated using linear regression analysis obtained in the length converted catch curve in MATERIALS AND METHODS the software FISAT (Gayanillo & Pauly, 1997). The index This study was conducted between January and of Munro & Pauly (1983) modi¢ed by Sparre (1987) (f0 ¼ December 1995 at Armac° a‹ o do Itapocoroy, Penha LnKþ2LnL1) was calculated to draw interspeci¢c (268460S488360W and 268470S488370W), southern Brazil. comparisons. The bottom of this area is composed of sand in the shallowest parts and by biodetritic sediment in the deepest ones. Monthly samples were collected in three periods RESULTS (morning, afternoon, and evening) using two over-trawls Temporal distribution with 6 m at the opening, 3-cm mesh at the outer part and The crabs were collected year round but with higher 2-cm mesh in the bag. The sediment was trawled from densities in September and October (Figure 1). The depths of 6 to 10 m during 30 min at a constant speed of 2 temperature varied from 18.78Cto26.58C during the knots.The abundance of individuals was compared among sampling period and the highest temperatures (25.0 periods of the day using a paired t-test and considering ^ 26.58C) were recorded in January, February, November months as temporal replicates. Three samples of water and December (Figure 1). The temperature decreased temperature were recorded in each sampling month (one throughout winter reaching the minimum value in for each sampling period of the day). September. The hermit crabs were more abundant during The individuals of Dardanus insignis were removed from the evening (45.92 Æ10.44 ind) than the afternoon their shells and then measured (cephalothoracic length (19.0 0 Æ5.11 ind) (Paired t-test, t¼À3.763, df¼11, and width, cm) and weighed (g). The shells were also P¼0.009). No di¡erences in abundance were recorded weighed (g). The sex of the crabs as well as the presence between the morning (34.92 Æ13.97 ind) and both of eggs in female pleopods was recorded. The population evening and afternoon (Paired t-test, t¼À1.087, df ¼11, sex ratio was compared to 1:1 with the log-likelihood P¼0.901; t¼1.193, df ¼11, P¼0.774, respectively). G-test (Zar, 1996). The size and weight of males and females and of ovigerous and non-ovigerous females were compared through the Student t-test (Zar, 1996). The Sex ratio exponential regression model (y¼a.xb) was ¢tted for the Females (617 ind) were slightly more abundant than relationships between the cephalothoracic length and males (579 ind) but the sex ratio was not di¡erent from width and between the cephalothoracic length and the 1:1 (G¼1.21, df ¼1, P¼n.s.). The size of the hermit crabs weight of all individuals, of males and females and of had an in£uence on the sex ratio (Figure 2). Females were ovigerous and non-ovigerous females. A Student t-test more abundant in the smallest size-classes (51.8 cm) while was used to test the null hypothesis of isometry (b¼1) in males outnumbered females in the largest ones (42.2 cm). these models. All tests were conducted with the signi¢cant Males and females were equally abundant at the 2.0 cm level ¢xed at 0.05. Mean Æstandard error is presented size-class. Sex ratio, indicated here by the proportion of through the text. males in the population, varied among the sampling The estimates of the parameters of the VBGF were months from 0.37 to 0.69 but did not show any clear based on the size^frequency distribution over time using seasonal pattern (Figure 3). the software FISAT (Gayanilo & Pauly, 1997). A growth function with temporal oscillation suggested by Gayanilo & Pauly (1997) was used:  à ÀK(tÀt0)ÀCK=2p)½sin 2p(tÀWPþ0:5)Àsin 2p(t0ÀWPþ0:5) Lt ¼ L1 1 À e (1) where Lt is the length at a given time t, L1the asymptotic length (mm), K the growth constant or curvature para- meter (rate at which L1 is approached), t0 the starting sample through which the growth curve passes, C the amplitude of seasonal growth (0, minimum; 1, maximum) and WP (winter point) the proportion of the year when growth rate is slowest.