The wet weight (WW) of R. harrisii inhabiting the Gulf of Gdańsk was sexually dimorphic and differed significantly between the sexes; this has been shown for other crab species ( Fransozo et al. 2003, Czerniejewski & Wawrzyniak 2006, Pinheiro & Hattori 2006). According to Fransozo et al. (2003), this could be due to a difference in energy allocation resulting from reproductive differences (i.e. females cannot attain the larger sizes or heavier weights of males owing to the larger energy requirements of egg

production). In some crab species, this weight difference is due to the males’ positive allometric growth of chelipeds ( Pinheiro selleck chemical & Hattori 2006). According to Turoboyski (1973), R. harrisii male claw weight accounts for up to 64.0% of the total body weight, whereas female claws contribute only 11.1 to 28.0% to the total body weight. This may also explain why males of R. harrisii were heavier than females of the same carapace width. However, a few individual females were outliers and exhibited either higher or lower wet weights in regard to the power function fitted to the empirical points of this CW: WW relationship. A greater wet weight might be observed prior to the female laying eggs when the gonads

are heavy; a lower wet weight could indicate that the female had already produced an egg mass and the eggs had hatched. Moreover, individual variation Arachidonate 15-lipoxygenase in wet weight could also be influenced by differential stomach fullness. According to Le Cren (1951), the condition factor can http://www.selleckchem.com/products/ABT-737.html provide important information about the ‘well-being’ of a species and can indicate such aspects as recent feeding conditions and the degree of adjustment to the environment. Based on the condition factor, R. harrisii females from Gulf of Gdańsk are in better condition than males even though the males in this population grow faster than females of the same carapace width as a consequence of isometric

weight gain. While most studies show a higher condition factor for males ( Emmanuel 2008, Mohapatra et al. 2010, Patil & Patil 2012), the condition factor is known to be species-specific and can also vary between populations with female gonadal development and time of year ( Branco & Masunari 2000, Pinheiro & Fiscarelli 2009). Some crustacean females increase the weight/volume of the hepatopancreas, the gland responsible for the storage and transport of energy reserves to the ovaries during vitellogenesis ( Hæfner & Spaargaren 1993). Therefore, in some crab populations like swimming crabs (Callinectes danae, Dilocarcinus pagei) or West African blue crabs (Callinectes pallidus), the condition factor for females was higher than males ( Branco & Masunari 2000, Pinheiro & Taddei 2005, Oluwatoyin et al. 2013). R.