[Abundance and body size of Menippe mercenaria (Crustacea: Brachyura), in artificial refuges in Quintana Roo, Mexico].
In Florida and Cuba the stone crab Menippe mercenaria (Say, 1818) is under strong fishing-pressure; nevertheless in the Mexican Caribbean it is considered as sub-utilized and poorly known resource. Artificial shelters ("condominios cubanos") were used to study relative abundance, age structure, claw length-carapace amplitude relation, and population in three seasons and four sectors at Bahía Ascension, Quintana Roo, Mexico. The abundance varied according to the sector and sampling season: population was higher in the south and during the north wind ("Nortes") season (January to March). The carapace amplitude was directly proportional to claw length (r2 = 0.83, 0.97 and 0.89; p < 0.05 in females, males and total, respectively). The results suggest that specimens with 37.5 and 67.5 mm of carapace amplitude are the most limited regarding refuge availability in the Bay.
Cervantes-Martínez
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El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR), Carretera Chetumal-Bacalar Km 2, Zona Industrial No. 2, C.P. 77049, A.P. 424, Chetumal Quintana Roo, México. adrian@ecosur-qroo.mx
Ramírez-González
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D000818:Animals; D001699:Biometry; D003386:Brachyura / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico; D011156:Population Density; D012621:Seasons; D012623:Seawater