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Comparison of culture performance and gonadal development of wild-caught Chinese mitten crab Eriocheir sinensis juveniles from three major river populations

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  • Fisheries
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Abstract

The Chinese mitten crab Eriocheir sinensis is an important aquaculture species in China, the main culture locations of which are the river basins of the Liaohe, Huanghe and Yangtze Rivers. This study was conducted to compare culture performance and gonadal development of wild E. sinensis populations from the three rivers cultured in identical ponds. In both females and males, the Yangtze population (YP) had a significantly (P < 0.05) higher mean body weight, weight gain rate (WGR) and specific growth rate (SGR) than the Liaohe population (LP) from March to May and July–September, and the LP had the highest WGR and SGR from May to July. The onset of molting during puberty and gonad development were earliest in the LP; the gonadosomatic index of the Huanghe population (HP) was between that of the YP and LP. In terms of size distribution, YP and LP had the most large-sized and small-sized individuals, respectively. YP had the highest yield and lowest feed conversion rate (FCR), and HP had the lowest survival and highest FCR. In conclusion, the YP showed the best culture performance of the three populations. Each population completed puberty molting and gonadal development at a different time, therefore selective breeding could extend the time to market of this crab.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Scientific and Technological Cooperation Project (grant number 2014DFT30270) of the Chinese mainland and Taiwan of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China; the Innovation Fund for Small and Medium-sized Technology-based Firms (grant number 14C26213201214) of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China; the Special Fund for Scientific Research in the Public Welfare of Agricultural Industry (grant number 201203081); and the R & D Project (grant number CK2015-21) of the Science and Technology Committee of Chongming County. Infrastructure costs were supported by the Shanghai Universities Top Disciplines Project of Fisheries (grant number 2015-62-0908) of the Shanghai Municipal Education Committee; the Extension Project (grant number 2015-1-7) of Shanghai Agriculture Committee; and the Capacity Promotion Projects (grant numbers 16DZ2281200, 13DZ2280500) of the Shanghai Engineering and Technology Center of the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Freshwater Aquatic Genetic Resources, Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Ocean University, 999 Huchenghuan Road, Shanghai, 201306, China

    Xugan Wu, Hengliang Zhao, Xiaodong Jiang, Jie He & Yongxu Cheng

  2. National Demonstration Center for Experimental Fisheries Science Education, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, 201306, China

    Xugan Wu, Hengliang Zhao, Xiaodong Jiang, Jie He & Yongxu Cheng

  3. Shanghai Collaborative Innovation for Aquatic Animal Genetics and Breeding, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, 201306, China

    Xugan Wu & Yongxu Cheng

  4. Panjin Guanghe Crab Industry, Panjin, Liaoning, China

    Naigeng Liu

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  1. Xugan Wu
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  2. Hengliang Zhao
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  3. Xiaodong Jiang
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  4. Jie He
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  5. Naigeng Liu
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  6. Yongxu Cheng
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Correspondence to Yongxu Cheng.

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Wu, X., Zhao, H., Jiang, X. et al. Comparison of culture performance and gonadal development of wild-caught Chinese mitten crab Eriocheir sinensis juveniles from three major river populations. Fish Sci 84, 929–937 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-018-1237-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-018-1237-y

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