Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Feb 17;6(1):107-15.
doi: 10.7150/ijbs.6.107.

High prevalence of multiple paternity in the invasive crayfish species, Procambarus clarkii

Gen Hua Yue  1 , Jia Le Li, Chun Ming Wang, Jun Hong Xia, Gen Lin Wang, Jian Bing Feng
Affiliations

High prevalence of multiple paternity in the invasive crayfish species, Procambarus clarkii

Gen Hua Yue et al. Int J Biol Sci. .

Abstract

Reproductive strategy is a central feature of the ecology of invasive species as it determines the potential for population increase and range expansion. The red swamp crayfish, Procambarus clarkii, has invaded many countries and caused serious problems in freshwater ecosystems. However, little is known about the effects of environmental conditions on crayfish paternity and offspring traits in the wild. We studied these reproductive characteristics of P. clarkii in wild populations from two different habitats (ponds and ditches) in three locations with different environmental conditions in China. Genotyping of 1,436 offspring and 30 mothers of 30 broods was conducted by using four microsatellites. An analysis of genotyping results revealed that gravid females were the exclusive mother of the progeny they tended. Twenty-nine of 30 mothers had mated with multiple (2-4) males, each of which contributed differently to the number of offspring in a brood. The average number of fathers per brood and the number of offspring per brood were similar (P>0.05) among six sampling sites, indicating that in P. clarkii multiple paternity and offspring number per brood are independent of environmental conditions studied. Indirect benefits from increasing the genetic diversity of broods, male and sperm competition, and cryptic female choice are a possible explanation for the high level multiple paternity and different contribution of fathers to offspring in this species.

Keywords: Decapod; allochthonous species; mating system; microsatellite; multiple paternity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: The authors have declared that no conflict of interest exists.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
Relative contribution of fathers to broods sired by multiple paternity in 30 broods of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii). F1: the first father; F2: the second father; F3: the third father and F4: the fourth father.
Fig 2
Fig 2
The number of offspring per brood plotted against female body size in 30 broods of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii)
Fig 3
Fig 3
The number of offspring in 30 broods plotted against the number of fathers in 30 broods of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii)
Fig 4
Fig 4
The number of fathers detected in 30 broods plotted against female body length in 30 broods of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Ruiz GM, Carlton JT. Invasive Species. London: Island Press; 2003.
    1. Cox GW. Alien Species and Evolution-The Evolutionary Ecology of Exotic Plants, Animals, Microbes, and Interacting Native Species. London: Island Press; 2004.
    1. Zhang DX, Hewitt GM. Nuclear DNA analyses in genetic studies of populations: practice, problems and prospects. Molecular Ecology. 2003;12(3):563–584. - PubMed
    1. Selkoe KA, Toonen RJ. Microsatellites for ecologists: a practical guide to using and evaluating microsatellite markers. Ecology Letters. 2006;9:615–629. - PubMed
    1. Jones AG, Ardren WR. Methods of parentage analysis in natural populations. Molecular Ecology. 2003;12(10):2511–2523. - PubMed

Publication types