Temperature can exert impacts on many processes in ectotherms. With global temperatures rising due to climate change, many ectothermic species may exhibit changes in growth rates and size at maturity, and these changes can have population-level effects. Predicting responses of species to climate change will require not only knowledge of thermal tolerance limits, but also effects of temperature change on growth rates and other life history parameters. For arthropods that exhibit discontinuous growth (i.e., molting), this includes both intermolt period and growth per molt. Previous laboratory and field experiments suggest that temperature affects both intermolt period (IMP) and growth per molt (GPM) in many crustaceans, including blue crabs. Field surveys suggest that blue crabs reach maturity at larger sizes in cooler areas, and at smaller sizes in warm areas. In this study I investigate the effect of temperature on the growth process in blue crabs Callinectes sapidus and lesser blue crabs Callinectes similis, to examine differences in temperature sensitivity of growth rates across seasonal thermal regimes. Observed growth dynamics differed between species and were dependent on the time of collection and the temperature regime experienced by the crabs. Future research should examine the effect of temperature on growth in crabs from metamorphosis to maturity to determine if the response is consistent across all instars, and to directly assess effects of temperature on size at maturity.
","abstract_html":"<p>Temperature can exert impacts on many processes in ectotherms. With global temperatures rising due to climate change, many ectothermic species may exhibit changes in growth rates and size at maturity, and these changes can have population-level effects. Predicting responses of species to climate change will require not only knowledge of thermal tolerance limits, but also effects of temperature change on growth rates and other life history parameters. For arthropods that exhibit discontinuous growth (i.e., molting), this includes both intermolt period and growth per molt. Previous laboratory and field experiments suggest that temperature affects both intermolt period (IMP) and growth per molt (GPM) in many crustaceans, including blue crabs. Field surveys suggest that blue crabs reach maturity at larger sizes in cooler areas, and at smaller sizes in warm areas. In this study I investigate the effect of temperature on the growth process in blue crabs <em>Callinectes sapidus</em> and lesser blue crabs <em>Callinectes similis</em>, to examine differences in temperature sensitivity of growth rates across seasonal thermal regimes. Observed growth dynamics differed between species and were dependent on the time of collection and the temperature regime experienced by the crabs. Future research should examine the effect of temperature on growth in crabs from metamorphosis to maturity to determine if the response is consistent across all instars, and to directly assess effects of temperature on size at maturity.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Kuhn, Abigail Ann"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":"Coastal Sciences, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Zachary Darnell","Robert T. Leaf","Frank J. Hernandez"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:44:50Z","subjects":["climate change","crustacean","temperature","ecophysiology","intermolt period","growth per molt","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology","Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment","Marine Biology","Physiology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/329","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Zachary Darnell","Robert T. Leaf","Frank J. 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With global temperatures rising due to climate change, many ectothermic species may exhibit changes in growth rates and size at maturity, and these changes can have population-level effects. Predicting responses of species to climate change will require not only knowledge of thermal tolerance limits, but also effects of temperature change on growth rates and other life history parameters. For arthropods that exhibit discontinuous growth (i.e., molting), this includes both intermolt period and growth per molt. Previous laboratory and field experiments suggest that temperature affects both intermolt period (IMP) and growth per molt (GPM) in many crustaceans, including blue crabs. Field surveys suggest that blue crabs reach maturity at larger sizes in cooler areas, and at smaller sizes in warm areas. In this study I investigate the effect of temperature on the growth process in blue crabs Callinectes sapidus and lesser blue crabs Callinectes similis, to examine differences in temperature sensitivity of growth rates across seasonal thermal regimes. Observed growth dynamics differed between species and were dependent on the time of collection and the temperature regime experienced by the crabs. Future research should examine the effect of temperature on growth in crabs from metamorphosis to maturity to determine if the response is consistent across all instars, and to directly assess effects of temperature on size at maturity.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Effects of Temperature on Growth and Molting in Blue Crabs (Callinectes Sapidus) and Lesser Blue Crabs (Callinectes similis)"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Zachary Darnell","Robert T. Leaf","Frank J. Hernandez"],"dc:creator":["Kuhn, Abigail Ann"],"dc:date.available":["2017-10-18T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Temperature can exert impacts on many processes in ectotherms. With global temperatures rising due to climate change, many ectothermic species may exhibit changes in growth rates and size at maturity, and these changes can have population-level effects. Predicting responses of species to climate change will require not only knowledge of thermal tolerance limits, but also effects of temperature change on growth rates and other life history parameters. For arthropods that exhibit discontinuous growth (i.e., molting), this includes both intermolt period and growth per molt. Previous laboratory and field experiments suggest that temperature affects both intermolt period (IMP) and growth per molt (GPM) in many crustaceans, including blue crabs. Field surveys suggest that blue crabs reach maturity at larger sizes in cooler areas, and at smaller sizes in warm areas. In this study I investigate the effect of temperature on the growth process in blue crabs Callinectes sapidus and lesser blue crabs Callinectes similis, to examine differences in temperature sensitivity of growth rates across seasonal thermal regimes. Observed growth dynamics differed between species and were dependent on the time of collection and the temperature regime experienced by the crabs. Future research should examine the effect of temperature on growth in crabs from metamorphosis to maturity to determine if the response is consistent across all instars, and to directly assess effects of temperature on size at maturity.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/329"],"dc:subject":["climate change","crustacean","temperature","ecophysiology","intermolt period","growth per molt","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology","Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment","Marine Biology","Physiology"],"dc:title":["Effects of Temperature on Growth and Molting in Blue Crabs (Callinectes Sapidus) and Lesser Blue Crabs (Callinectes similis)"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Coastal Sciences, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:44:50Z"}