Open AccessOBSERVATIONS ON THE BIOLOGY OF Macrobrachium americanum BATE FROM A POND ENVIRONMENT IN PANAMA 3
Author(s) -
Smitherman R. O.,
Moss D. D.,
Diaz Enrique L.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
proceedings of the annual meeting ‐ world mariculture society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.655
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1749-7345
pISSN - 0164-0399
DOI - 10.1111/j.1749-7345.1974.tb00176.x
Subject(s) - panama , shrimp , macrobrachium , biology , fecundity , larva , omnivore , population , juvenile , sex ratio , ecology , zoology , fishery , decapoda , crustacean , demography , sociology , predation
Observations on the biology of Macrobrachium americanum from a 0.61‐ha pond on the Pacific slope of central Panama were made from 1970 to 1973. Specimens were transported to Auburn University in 1970, and their growth rate and cold tolerance were observed in ponds. Fecundity and early life of larvae were studied in the laboratory. Spawning in the Panama pond occurred June to November, with a peak in September when 55% of all captured females had eggs. Methods for determining sex of immature prawns were devised. Length‐weight relationships for the population were determined. Feeding experiments in aquaria, and the wide variety of plant and animal materials used successfully as bait, indicated the omnivorous food habits of Macrobrachium americanum. Recaptures of identifiable specimens suggested territorality. The importance of space to individua adult shrimp was further indicated by the positive correlation of number of specimens captured with area of trap bottom.