Fecundity Differences Between Primiparous and Multiparous Female Alaskan Tanner Crab (Chionoecetes Bairdi)

Abstract

Fecundities of primiparous and multiparous female Tanner crab (Chionoecetes bairdi) from the eastern Bering Sea are compared. Primiparous females are approximately 70% as fecund as equal-sized multiparous females. Since primiparous females molt and grow before extruding eggs, whereas multiparous females do not grow, the lesser fecundity of primiparous females may be due either to the energetic cost of growth or to their having a smaller volume within the exoskeleton available for ovarian tissue at their premolt size.