The Population and Reproductive Characteristics of the Hermit Crab Pagurus brachiomastus (Thallwitz, 1892) (Decapoda: Paguridae) from Peter the Great Bay, the Sea of Japan

Abstract

The population and reproductive characteristics of the hermit crab Pagurus brachiomastus (Thallwitz, 1892) have been examined in Vostok Bay (Peter the Great Bay, Sea of Japan). The average population density of P. brachiomastus was lowest in the spring (2.4 ± 0.6 ind./m²) and highest (3.1 ± 0.4 ind./m²) in the summer; the biomass was 18.24 ± 3.75 and 22.83 ± 2.80 g/m², respectively. Hermit crabs were found throughout the depth range from 0 to 12 m, but were most numerous at a depth of approximately 5–6 m, with an average population density of 8.3 ± 3.7 ind./m² and a biomass of 39.09 ± 8.51 g/m² in the summer. The shield length of males varied from 1.3 to 10.3 mm (on average, 5.3 ± 2.2 mm), that of females varied from 1.3 to 10.6 mm (on average, 4.3 ± 1.5 mm), and that of ovigerous females varied from 1.5 to 8.4 mm (on average, 4.4 ± 1.5 mm). The male to female ratio varied from 0.8 to 3.3 during the observation period, with an average of 1.7. Spawning continued from March through August. The proportion of ovigerous females increased from 8.5% in March to 82.8% in May; embryos in clutches remained in the early stage of development until the second 10-day period of May. Egg development was resumed when the water temperature reached 10°C. Breeding was asynchronous: in June–August, females with late-stage embryos and females with recently laid eggs were observed, indicating the possibility of repeated spawning. The data we obtained showed that the favorable coexistence of P. brachiomastus with other sympatric species in the study area is provided by the spatial dissociation of their clusters and differences in size characteristics, as well as the presence of an embryonic diapause in egg development in part of the females and the possibility of repeated spawning.