Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs

Soft-shell crabs are highly sought after due to their ease of storage and can be eaten whole, including the outer carapace. The high demand for soft-shell crabs leads to the exploration of different production techniques and methods. This study explores the effect of limb autotomy, eyestalk ablation...

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Main Authors: Mhd Ikhwanuddin, Hanafiah Fazhan, Wang, Youji, Chong, Alexander Shu-Chien, Abualreesh, Muyassar H., Mohamad Jalilah, Ambok Bolong Abol-Munafi, Khor, Waiho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2025
Online Access:http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/1/SMD%203.pdf
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author Mhd Ikhwanuddin,
Hanafiah Fazhan,
Wang, Youji
Chong, Alexander Shu-Chien
Abualreesh, Muyassar H.
Mohamad Jalilah,
Ambok Bolong Abol-Munafi,
Khor, Waiho
author_facet Mhd Ikhwanuddin,
Hanafiah Fazhan,
Wang, Youji
Chong, Alexander Shu-Chien
Abualreesh, Muyassar H.
Mohamad Jalilah,
Ambok Bolong Abol-Munafi,
Khor, Waiho
author_sort Mhd Ikhwanuddin,
building UKM Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Soft-shell crabs are highly sought after due to their ease of storage and can be eaten whole, including the outer carapace. The high demand for soft-shell crabs leads to the exploration of different production techniques and methods. This study explores the effect of limb autotomy, eyestalk ablation and their combinations on the duration and success rate till the next moulting, and the size increment and survival rate of male juveniles of Scylla olivacea after moult. Additionally, female juveniles were also subjected to limb autotomy to investigate the potential impact of sex on their response to the procedure. Full limb autotomy (T2), either alone or with eyestalk ablation (T4), induced the fastest moulting (average 33 d and 39 d, respectively), followed by eyestalk ablation (average 57 d) and control (average 82 d). Limb autotomy, either alone or with eyestalk ablation, resulted in 100% and 90% moulting success, respectively, whereas that of eyestalk ablation and control was 50% and 56.83%, respectively. Crabs subjected to both moult-inducing techniques had the lowest size and weight gain after moulting. Females moulted faster than males in natural conditions, but this was negligible when limb autotomy was introduced. Limb autotomy had no impact on the CW increment and survival rate of both sexes, but greatly reduced their BW increment. Thus, limb autotomy can be incorporated in the production of soft-shell crabs to reduce turnover time.
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spelling oai:generic.eprints.org:251982025-05-08T04:07:09Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/ Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs Mhd Ikhwanuddin, Hanafiah Fazhan, Wang, Youji Chong, Alexander Shu-Chien Abualreesh, Muyassar H. Mohamad Jalilah, Ambok Bolong Abol-Munafi, Khor, Waiho Soft-shell crabs are highly sought after due to their ease of storage and can be eaten whole, including the outer carapace. The high demand for soft-shell crabs leads to the exploration of different production techniques and methods. This study explores the effect of limb autotomy, eyestalk ablation and their combinations on the duration and success rate till the next moulting, and the size increment and survival rate of male juveniles of Scylla olivacea after moult. Additionally, female juveniles were also subjected to limb autotomy to investigate the potential impact of sex on their response to the procedure. Full limb autotomy (T2), either alone or with eyestalk ablation (T4), induced the fastest moulting (average 33 d and 39 d, respectively), followed by eyestalk ablation (average 57 d) and control (average 82 d). Limb autotomy, either alone or with eyestalk ablation, resulted in 100% and 90% moulting success, respectively, whereas that of eyestalk ablation and control was 50% and 56.83%, respectively. Crabs subjected to both moult-inducing techniques had the lowest size and weight gain after moulting. Females moulted faster than males in natural conditions, but this was negligible when limb autotomy was introduced. Limb autotomy had no impact on the CW increment and survival rate of both sexes, but greatly reduced their BW increment. Thus, limb autotomy can be incorporated in the production of soft-shell crabs to reduce turnover time. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2025 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/1/SMD%203.pdf Mhd Ikhwanuddin, and Hanafiah Fazhan, and Wang, Youji and Chong, Alexander Shu-Chien and Abualreesh, Muyassar H. and Mohamad Jalilah, and Ambok Bolong Abol-Munafi, and Khor, Waiho (2025) Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs. Sains Malaysiana, 54 (3). pp. 641-651. ISSN 0126-6039 https://www.ukm.my/jsm/english_journals/vol54num3_2025/contentsVol54num3_2025.html
spellingShingle Mhd Ikhwanuddin,
Hanafiah Fazhan,
Wang, Youji
Chong, Alexander Shu-Chien
Abualreesh, Muyassar H.
Mohamad Jalilah,
Ambok Bolong Abol-Munafi,
Khor, Waiho
Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
title Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
title_full Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
title_fullStr Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
title_full_unstemmed Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
title_short Effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
title_sort effects of eyestalk ablation and limb autotomy on moulting, growth and survival rate of orange mud crab, scylla olivacea juveniles for the production of soft-shell crabs
url http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25198/1/SMD%203.pdf