Spatiotemporal Distribution of Asian Horseshoe Crab Eggs Are Highly Intermingled with Anthropogenic Structures in Northern Beibu Gulf,China  

作　　者：KWAN Kit Yue FU Yijian ZHONG Mufeng KUANG Yang BAI Haiwei ZHANG Ce ZHEN Wenquan XU Peng WANG Chun-Chieh ZHU Junhua 

机构地区：[1]College of Marine Sciences,Beibu Gulf Ocean Development Research Center,Beibu Gulf University,Qinzhou,535011,China [2]Guangxi Key Laboratory of Beibu Gulf Marine Biodiversity Conservation,Qinzhou,535011,China [3]Guangxi Key Laboratory of Marine Disaster in the Beibu Gulf,Qinzhou,535011,China [4]Guangxi Beibu Gulf Marine Research Center,Guangxi Academy of Sciences,Nanning,530007,China

出　　处：《Journal of Ocean University of China》2022年第3期531-540,共10页中国海洋大学学报（英文版）

基　　金：the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.32060129,42067038);the Beibu Gulf Ocean Development Research Center under Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences in Guangxi Universities;the Guangxi Bagui Youth Scholars Programme;the Guangxi Recruitment Program of 100 Global Experts。

摘　　要：Identification,protection and restoration of spawning habitats are vital for protecting the depleted species.Asian horseshoe crabs are ecologically important macroinvertebrates in coastal and estuarine ecosystems.However,their spawning habitat studies were limited to several reports in tropical regions,possibly due to the lack of modified survey methods,particularly in habitats with a lower density of spawning adults,and/or intermingled with anthropogenic structures.In this study,the year-round egg distribution and spawning habitat baselines of Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda and Tachypleus tridentatus were determined in the northern Beibu Gulf,China.Our findings demonstrated that the peak spawning occurred in June–July and ceased in November–January when the average water temperature dropped below 20℃.Egg aggregations were found<10 cm beneath the sediment surface with regular tidal inundation,regardless of seasonal changes,in the vicinity of natural and artificial structures with elevated,mildly sloping substratum within the high tide zones.The nests were characterized by medium-sized sediment grains(0.5–0.9 mm),high temperatures(31–34℃),low water contents(0.8%–0.9%),and total organic carbon contents(0.5%–0.7%),which might maximize the hatching success.The identified nesting beaches were close to nursery habitats for juveniles,and tidal creeks were present as the possible corridor connecting these two important habitats through the dominant mangrove forests.The findings provide valuable insights in the scope of spawning behavior and nest-site selection of Asian horseshoe crabs under a mixture of natural and artificial structures,which could benefit future management efforts for the exploited spawning populations.

关 键 词：Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda Tachypleus tridentatus MANGROVE tidal creek sediment texture slope elevated substratum 

分 类 号：Q958[生物学—动物学]