NOTES AND NEWS

THE BLUE CRAB, CALLINECTES SAPIDUS RATHBUN, 1896 (DECAPODA,

PORTUNIDAE) IN THE RÍO DE LA PLATA, ARGENTINA

BY

INÉS I. CESAR 1,4 /, LAURA C. ARMENDÁRIZ2 /, NICOLÁS OLALLA 2 /

and ALEJANDRO TABLADO 3 /
1 / Investigador (CIC), División Zoología Invertebrados, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales
y Museo de La Plata, Av. Paseo del Bosque s/n, 1900 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
2 / División Zoología Invertebrados, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo de La Plata,
Av. Paseo del Bosque s/n, 1900 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
3 / CONICET, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia”,
Av. Angel Gallardo 470, 1405 Buenos Aires, Argentina

INTRODUCTION

The blue crab, Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896 is a coastal species occurring
on a variety of substrates in shallow and saline continental waters. It is of
great commercial importance and one of the most studied portunids (Branco &
Masunari, 2000). With regard to its geographical distribution, it has been reported
from 45± to 10± N and from 18± to 36± S (Williams, 1974) along the American
coast of the Atlantic Ocean. In fact, Boschi (1964) recorded its extreme southern
distribution at the Quequén River (38± 320 S 58± 420 W) with only one individual
found in the Río de la Plata (Ringuelet, 1963). The morphological variation of the
carapace and the length of its carapace spines as recorded along its distributional
range have been interpreted as indicating the existence of subspecies by Rathbun
(1896). However, other authors (Williams, 1974; Olmi & Bishop, 1983) consider
these variations are not so important and would rather be indicative of a group of
variable populations that comprise only one, monotypic species.
According to studies on the biology of this crab at other latitudes (Williams,
1974; Olmi & Bishop, 1983; Zinski, 2002) its life cycle would include two stages:
the estuarine stage and the offshore stage. Consequently, as most other portunids,
it requires a variety of habitats, the actual use of which is in uenced by many
factors. C. sapidus grows and mates in the estuaries, and after mating ovigerous
females migrate to higher salinity waters for eclosion of the larvae, while males

4 / e-mail: [email protected]

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2003 Crustaceana 76 (3): 377-384

Also available online: www.brill.nl
378 NOTES AND NEWS

remain in brackish or freshwater areas where they burrow to spend the winter
in dormancy. Hatching and development take place in the outer, shallow areas
of the estuaries and seas where dispersion capacity increases and osmotic stress
decreases. Megalopae and young crabs come back into the estuaries to feed and
sexually mature (Mantelatto, 1999).
Callinectes sapidus consumes a variety of food, including small Ž sh, benthic
invertebrates, and other crustaceans. It is a detritivore and bottom-carnivore. Adult
blue crabs prefer bivalve molluscs (Hsueh et al., 1992; Zinski, 2002). Its predatory
behaviour with respect to the invasive zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas,
1771) in the Hudson River estuary (U.S.A.) is well known (Boles & Lipcius, 1994;
Molloy et al., 1994).
The aim of this work is to report on Callinectes sapidus’ new distribution
localities, to inform about its feeding habits in the Rio de la Plata, and to conŽ rm
that it is a predator of the golden mussel, Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker, 1857).

DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA STUDIED

The river known as Río de la Plata is a body of water of 300 km long. The
estuary is 200 km wide at its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean, and it decreases
to 40 km at its narrowest section. It covers 38,800 km2 between Argentina and
Uruguay. It drains the second largest basin in the continent and discharges its
waters straight into the Atlantic Ocean. The river can be divided into three sections
according to its salinity, the origin and quality of its sediments, and its fauna
and  ora: the inner, middle, and outer sections (Ž g. 1). The inner area where the
riverhead is, includes the lower delta of the Paraná River. It is 1 to 3 m deep with
salinity levels ranging from 0.07 to 0.57‰, and prevailing sediments are Ž ne sand,
mud, and clay. The organisms found in this area are typically freshwater species.
The middle stretch of the river is 3-7 m deep with salinity levels ranging from
0.20 to 2.71‰ and mud as the prevailing sediment. The in uence of sea water
and presence of marine organisms are observed in this section. The outer zone
includes the estuarine area, which has the highest salinity values (15.23-32.04‰).
This section is 5 to 18 or 20 m deep (near the Uruguayan coast) with prevailing
mud-clayish sediments. The Río de la Plata is mostly turbid, due to the sediment
contribution of the Paraná River. Since it has a shallow average depth it cannot
generate its own tides, and therefore its changes in water level are in uenced by
the ocean and atmospheric disturbances. Such marine in uence is observed even
at the head of the river (Boschi, 1988; López Laborde, 1998; Nagy et al., 1998).
 NOTES AND NEWS 379

Fig. 1. a, The distribution of Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896 (continuous line) and Limnoperna
fortunei (Dunker, 1857) (dotted line) in South America; b, map showing the sampling localities (open
circles) along the Río de la Plata where Callinectes sapidus specimens were obtained.
380 NOTES AND NEWS

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total sample of 20 individuals of Callinectes sapidus (19 males and an

immature female) was collected at the Río de la Plata in the period from February
to May 2002. The animals were found in the following localities: Canal Honda,
Abra Vieja and Canal A, Arroyo Nicolini (Tigre), San Isidros’s shore (inner Rio de
la Plata), Punta Lara, Atalaya (middle Rio de la Plata), El Pescado Stream (at the
intersection of Provincial Road N± 11) and San Clemente del Tuyú (outer Rio de
la Plata) (Ž g. 1). The crabs were caught using traditional Ž shing methods, trawls,
and crab’s disks (an iron ring of 40 cm diameter with a metallic 1 cm mesh size to
which a bait is added). The material was Ž xed in 10% formalin immediately after
collection and then preserved in 80% ethanol.
Crabs were identiŽ ed following Rathbun (1896, 1930) and Williams (1974).
Additional material, earlier deposited at the Museo Argentino de Ciencias Natu-
rales “Bernardino Rivadavia”, was consulted: MACN In 30107, 2 ovigerous //
(Laguna de Rocha, Uruguay); MACN In 21892, 1 ovigerous/ (Puerto Quequén,
Argentina); MACN In 23081, 2 ?? (Río de Janeiro, Brazil); MACN In 19487,
2 non-ovigerous// and 2 ?? (Cape Charles, Virginia, U.S.A.).
Total carapace width (including lateral spines), carapace width and length,
abdomen width, length, width, and depth of the chelar propodus, and length of
the right chelar dactylus were measured with callipers to an accuracy of 0.2 mm
(Pinheiro & Fransozo, 1993).
Sixteen crab foreguts were removed in order to perform a diet analysis. Stomach
dissection was not performed on the other four crabs, since these were held in
an aquarium and one of them was fed on Limnoperna fortunei. Empty foreguts
were recorded, and those with contents were examined under the stereoscopic
and compound microscopes. Prey items were sorted into broad taxonomic groups:
L. fortunei and other molluscan remains were identiŽ ed on the basis of shell
fragments. Fish remains were identiŽ ed by the presence of undigested vertebrae,
scales, or intact body parts. Unrecognizable, partially digested organic matter was
categorized as digested animal tissue (DAT). Each prey item was dried at 60± C for
24 h and then weighed.
The Frequency of Occurrence Index (FO) and the Index of Relative Importance
(IRI) were used to evaluate the natural diet of C. sapidus (cf. Williams, 1982;
Hsueh et al., 1992). The FO was calculated for each prey by dividing the number
of crabs in the sample whose foregut contained a given prey by the total number of
crabs in the sample. The IRI for each food item was calculated as the sum of the
numerical composition (NC) and Gravimetric Composition (GC), which value was
multiplied by the FO to yield the IRI. The NC was based on the percentage of the
total number of prey items in the sample, while GC was based on the percentage
of total dry weight of all foregut contents in the sample.
 NOTES AND NEWS 381

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The unusual presence of Callinectes sapidus in new localities that extend its
distribution along the Argentinean river coast was Ž rst noticed during the summer
of 2001/2002. It was found from San Clemente del Tuyú at the outer zone of the
estuary (ranger of Rincón de Ajó Natural Reserve, pers. comm.) to Canal Honda,
Tigre, the lower extreme of the Paraná River delta (Ž g. 1).
Table I shows the size of the specimens captured. Most of these were adult,
moulting males. They were similar to those recorded by other authors (Rathbun,
1896, 1930; Williams, 1974; Olmi & Bishop, 1983; Carmona-Suarez & Conde,
1996).
The specimens of C. sapidus captured showed an opportunistic diet, including
molluscs, small Ž sh, plants, as well as sediment and detritus. Out of the sixteen
stomachs analysed only one was empty. Fig. 2 gives the FO and IRI of the food
items from analysed foreguts. With reference to the FO, sediments, molluscan
remains, and digested animal tissue were the most frequent items. However, the IRI
shows the importance of Limnoperna fortunei as a prey for C. sapidus. In addition,
a specimen that was kept in the aquarium was regularly fed on that mussel. It was
interesting to observe the crab’s behaviour towards its prey: it took the mussel with
its right cheliped, broke it, took out the mussel’s soft parts with its left cheliped,
and ate these. After a while, the crab regurgitated the remains of the valves.
According to the results obtained, the presence of this species in the Río de la
Plata should be highlighted, since C. sapidus has never been recorded in this body
of water after Ringuelet’s (1963) reference. The presence of only adult males and
one juvenile female could be explained from the known biology of this crab and
other portunids, which inhabit different habitats during their life cycle. Growth,
mating, and spawning take place in the upper areas of estuaries and lagoons.

TABLE I
Morphometric variables measured (in mm) in specimens of Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896
collected from the Río de la Plata, Argentina

Males (n D 19) Female (n D 1)

Average Standard deviation Range
Carapace length 60:03 4:36 53.40-73.58 32:30
Carapace width 110:50 7:12 96.52-129.82 59:42
Total carapace width 139:31 10:24 123.40-160.58 72:76
Abdomen width 6:62 0:46 5.70-7.54 14:52
Chelar propodus length 76:38 7:75 67.0-100.34 32:82
Chelar propodus depth 23:59 3:19 19.06-32.38 10:16
Chelar propodus width 17:41 1:95 14.42-22.8 7:68
Chelar dactylus length 33:96 4:54 22.30-45.18 15:22
382 NOTES AND NEWS

Fig. 2. a, Frequency of Occurrence Index for each food item from the foreguts of Callinectes sapidus
Rathbun, 1896 collected from Río de la Plata, Argentina; b, do., Relative Importance Index. DAT,
digested animal tissue.

Hatching and development of larvae (zoeae and megalopae) occur in marine or

even oceanic waters. Therefore, while males remain for the main part of their life
cycle in the brackish and freshwater zones of estuaries and lagoons, ovigerous
females migrate towards marine waters for the hatching of their eggs (Mantelatto,
1999; Branco & Masunari, 2000).
The presence of C. sapidus in the Río de la Plata and its deep migration into
the delta area through tributary rivers and brooks belonging to the basin would
allow the settlement of a population that has never been observed before, as a
consequence of new food availability caused by the abundance of the invasive
mussel, L. fortunei. Hsueh et al. (1992) noted the importance of Ž sh and bivalve
molluscs in the diet of C. sapidus in populations from Mobile Bay (Alabama,
 NOTES AND NEWS 383

U.S.A.). The same happens in the Río de la Plata, though we Ž nd a lower diversity
of food items here, probably due to the characteristics of our benthic communities.
The golden mussel, L. fortunei has successfully invaded the Del Plata Basin
since 1991 (Pastorino et al., 1993; Darrigan & Pastorino, 1995; Darrigan & Ezcurra
de Drago, 2000). At present, it is geographically distributed along the Paraná River
up to the Itaipú Reservoir (Brazil) and through the Uruguay River up to the Salto
Grande Reservoir (Argentina-Uruguay) (Darrigran & Damborenea, pers. comm.).
The impact caused by L. fortunei on the natural ecosystems of the region includes
the displacement of local molluscs (Martin & Darrigran, 1994), a reduction in their
density, and biofouling processes that affect the water supply systems intended for
human consumption or industrial use (Darrigan & Ezcurra de Drago, 2000).
C. sapidus’ predation on the invasive zebra mussel, D. polymorpha has been
recorded in the Hudson River estuary, where the high predation rate would indicate
that the blue crab would be capable of controlling zebra mussel populations in
those habitats where this crab is abundant (Boles & Lipcius, 1994; Molloy et al.,
1994).
Considering the above mentioned problems caused by the golden mussel in the
Río de la Plata and other zones of the Paraná-Plata Basin, and taking into account
the fact that the blue crab has proven to be a new mussel predator, we do believe
that further investigation on C. sapidus and its possibly controlling activity on
L. fortunei populations should be carried out.

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First received 29 October 2002.

Final version accepted 7 January 2003.