Laboratory Moult Increment, Frequency, and Growth in Euastacus Sulcatus, The Lamington Spiny Crayfish

TL;DRAbstract

Over a period of three years we have investigated, in a laboratory environment, the moult increments, moult frequency, and growth in a small captive population of the species Euastacus sulcatus: this data allowed a model estimating age at size to be developed. As might be expected for a large species confined to habitats at high altitude, where water temperatures are typically cool: this study indicates growth is slow and the species is indeed long lived. We estimate that specimens of E. sulcatus with a OCL of 20 mm are ~1.5 years old, while specimens OCL ~100 mm are approximately 17 years old. While we were unable to estimate any effect(s) of the laboratory environment on growth, our estimates are comparable to those calculated for other species of Euastacus.

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