Title: Sexual dimorphism in mud crabs and the case of zombie crabs

Speakers: Dr. Khor Wai Ho and Dr. Mohd Fazhan Mohd Hanafiah (University Malaysia Terengganu)

Host: Dr. Sook Chung

Abstract: Sexual dimorphism is generally obvious in brachyurans. Mud crab genus Scylla are distributed along the Indo-West Pacific region, supporting the livelihood of coastal communities and the economic growth of many Asian countries. Species within this genus often exhibit overlapping niches and similar external morphologies. We compared the intra- and interspecific sexual dimorphism patterns of three sympatric Scylla species along the equatorial region and highlighted their similar and distinct sexual dimorphic characteristics. During our sampling, we noticed a specific population of mud crabs that do not conform with the normal sexual dimorphism patterns due to rhizocephalan infection. Infected crabs exhibited feminization, reduced secondary and primary sexual characters, gonadal atrophy and castration. Comparative gonadal transcriptome profiling of infected and normal crabs further provides new insight into the host-parasite relationship of rhizocephalan parasites and their crustacean hosts.

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