Test of method for telling moult stage of spiny lobsters
Project number:
1993-085
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure:
$126,489.00
Principal Investigator:
David L. Macmillan
Organisation:
University of Melbourne
Project start/end date:
13 Oct 1993
-
9 Mar 1998
Contact:
FRDC
1. To use a laboratory based experimental design to determine whether there is an orderly incremental addition of readily accessible external sensory structures with each molt to reveal the age/growth structure of local populations
Final report
Author:
David Macmillan
Final Report
•
2017-09-29
•
6.18 MB
1993-085-DLD.pdf
The fishing industry needs accurate ways to measure the age of animals to manage their populations better. The project shows that researchers studied the growth of receptors in crabs and lobsters to see if they could be used to determine age. They found that counting the number of receptors is only accurate in the early stages of growth. They also discovered new development processes in crustaceans. The method may still be useful for quickly growing animals such as prawns.
