Temporal and Spatial Variation of the Population of the Sand Crab Emerita Analoga on the Sandy Coastline of Islay (Arequipa), Southwestern Peru

Pariapaza-Coaquira E.F.; Flores-Carpio A.; Luque-Fernández C.R.; Coayla-Peñaloza P. · Thalassas (2026) · DOI: 10.1007/s41208-026-01042-2

Resumen

This is the first study to analyze the spatio-temporal variation of the population parameters of this crab along the coastal shoreline south of Arequipa in Peru. A total of 52 491 individuals were collected from three beaches in the Islay district during the spring of 2022 and the summer and autumn of 2023. Cephalothorax length (CL), total weight, and sex were recorded for population analysis. Results showed that 25.44% of the sample consisted of adults (45.81% females and 50.39% males), 58.22% were juveniles, and 16.34% were pre-juveniles. Size composition ranged from 1.01 to 29.57 mm CL (x̄=5.88 mm, SD = 2.92), with maximum lengths of 28.52 mm for males and 29.57 mm for females. Descriptive statistics were also obtained for each beach and sampling season. Regarding the length-weight relationship, the population exhibited isometric growth. A significant relationship (p < 0.001) was observed for both sexes; however, females tended to show a higher correlation coefficient compared to males. The estimated growth parameters for both sexes were: L ∞ = 35.8 mm and K = 0.98 for females; and L ∞ = 33.0 mm and K = 0.87 for males. This study evidence a possible nursery area on Peru, also provides insight into the current status of this species and contributes to future projections of its population dynamics in areas where it is distributed. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2026.

Instituciones: Universidad Nacional de San Agustín de Arequipa