Catch Composition of Bottom Set Gillnet, Sex Ratio, Size at First Maturity and Spawning Potential Ratio (SPR)

of Blue Swimming
Crab (Portunus pelagicus) along the waters of Concepcion, Iloilo, Central Philippines
Mery Rose A. Baroquillo, Krizha Mae G. Abia and Gerald F. Quinitio

Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanology

College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
University of the Philippines Visayas

1. Introduction 2. Methods

Crabs are one of the in-demand and highly-priced aquatic commodities in both local and international
markets (PCAMRD, 1996). The most common crab harvested for local consumption and export is the
blue swimming crab Portunus pelagicus and the mudcrab Scylla serrata (Ingles, 2004). P. pelagicus,
locally called as alimasag or kasag, is considered as one of the most important crab species in the
Philippines and ranked as the fourth most important fishery product of the country in terms of value
(BFAR, 2013). Concepcion, Iloilo waters belongs to the Visayan Sea which is one of the top three fish-
ing grounds of the country that constitutes 51% of country’s crab production (BFAR, 2000). Thus,
monitoring the status of the stock is important in order to suggest any possible fishery management
measures (Chande and Mgaya, 2003).
Various methods are used in determining the current condition of a fishing ground. Spawning potential
ratio (SPR) is a method used in determining the level of exploitation by comparing the spawning ability
of a stock in the fished condition to the stock’s ability in the unfished condition (Fetcher and Wallace,
1996). Moreover, Length-width/weight relationship is used in estimating the population size of the
stock in determining its exploitation level (Atar and Secer, 2003). Also, information about bycatch
caught by bottom set gillnets is considered to be important because it serves as baseline scientific in-
formation for future management of a crab fishing (Fazrul et al., 2015).
The study was conducted within Concepcion, Iloilo waters along the Visayan Sea as illustrated in Figure 3.1. Sampling of P.
pelagicus and bycatch were conducted two times every month. From November to December 2017, the samples were taken
from a fisherman who operated a 17-panel bottom set gillnet in Brgy. Salvacion. Then, from January to April 2018, the sam-
ples were taken from a fisherman who operated a 30-panel bottom set gillnet in Brgy. Bagongon. About 10% of the catch of
both target and non-target species served as samples which were taken and measured right after the fisherman had done
collecting the catch from the gear. The morphometric measurements were measured using a 1-kg top loading spring balance
with 10 g sensitivity and a Vernier caliper. For the target species, P. pelagicus, body weight and carapace width (internal and
external) were measured, and for the non-target species, body weight and total length were measured. Additional samples
needed for SPR were from a nearby processing plant in Brgy. Tambaliza and a trader “kumprador” at Brgy. Bagongon. A total
of about 1545 female crabs were used to estimate the SPR including the catch (239) of the two fisherfolk. Moreover, the sex-
es of the crabs were determined using the appearance of its abdominal flap as described by Maine (2017). P. pelagicus male
maturity stage was determined following the method described by Abul-Munafi et al. (2009) by checking the appearance and
size of the vas deferens. Female maturity was categorized as: 1-immature; 2-mature; and 3-berried (Fig. 3.2).
A B C D

This study aims to determine the P. pelagicus monthly frequency distribution of male and female, car-
apace width seasonal variation, size relationship, size at first maturity, sex ratio, SPR and catch com-
position and catch per unit effort (CPUE) of crabs by bottom set gillnet. Figure 2.2. Portunus pelagicus sex and maturity level of crabs used in this study. A, Male. B, Imma-
ture Female - 1. C, Mature Female - 2. D, Berried Female - 3.
Figure 2.1. Map showing the location of Concepcion, Iloilo
(Source: Castillon, 2013)

3. Results
A B

Figure 3.1. Mean monthly biomass and number of Portunus pelagicus and bycatch caught by
bottom set gillnet in Concepcion, Iloilo from November 2017 to April 2018. Num-
bers in parenthesis indicate the mean monthly catch.
Figure 3.5. The percent maturity of Portunus pelagicus female (A) and male (B) in Concepcion,
Figure 3.9. Mean catch per unit effort (CPUE) of Portunus pelagicus and bycatch of the bot-
Iloilo waters. A, Female. B, Male.
tom set gillnet caught from November 2017 to January 2018 (wet season) and
from February to April 2018 (dry season).
.

Table 3.2. Composition and utilization of bycatch caught by bottom set gillnet in Concepcion,
Iloilo from November 2017 to April 2018. R – Retained; D – Discarded

Local Name

Family Scientific Name Common Name (used in Con- Utilization

Figure 3.2. Frequency distribution of female and male from November 2017 to April 2018 in A. Fish
Concepcion, Iloilo waters. Carangidae Carangoides chrysophrys Caranx Salaming R
Figure 3.6. Maturity and selectivity curves generated by The Barefoot’s Ecologist’s Toolbox for Elagatis bipinnulata Rainbow runner Salmon R
Spawning Potential Ratio Assessment of Portunus pelagicus in Concepcion, Iloilo
waters. Congridae Conger conger Common Eel Tamayo R
Paralichthyidae Pseudorhombus sp. Flounder fish Palad R
Platycephalidae Platycephalus sp. Flathead fish Sunog/ R

Sunogan
Serranidae Epinephelus areolatus Areolate grouper Alatan R
Sillaginidae Sillago sp. Whiting Asohos R
S oleidae Synaptura marginata Margined sole Palad R
Pardachirus pavoninus. Peacock sole Palad R

B. Cephalopod
Sepiidae Sepia sp. Cuttlefish Bagulan R
C. Crustaceans
Portunidae Podophthalmus vigil Long-eyed swim- Kasway R
Figure 3.3. Frequency distribution of different sizes of male and female Portunus pelagicus Figure 3.7. Length frequency histogram generated by The Barefoot’s Ecologist’s Toolbox for
ming crab
caught by bottom set gillnet in Concepcion, Iloilo during the wet (A) and dry (B) sea- Spawning Potential Ratio Assessment of Portunus pelagicus in Concepcion, Iloilo
son. waters. D. Bivalves
Peniidae Atrina fragilis Penshell Tukman R
Table 3.1. Spawning Potential Ratio (SPR) parameter estimates of Portunus pelagicus in Con-
cepcion, Iloilo waters. F/M, fishing pressure. SL50, carapace width (CW) at which Malleidae Malleus malleus Hammer Oyster Wasay-wasay R
crabs had 50% probability being caught. SL95, carapace width (CW) at which crabs E. Gastropod
had 95% probability being caught.
Hexaplex cichoreum Endive murex Umang, Bung- D
F/M SPR SL50 (mm) SL95 (mm)
5.46 32% 125.52 142.98 sod
F. Reptiles
Elapidae Hydrophis spiralis Yellow sea snake Indong D
Hydrophis sp. Common Sea Nipa-nipa D

snake

Figure 3.4. Carapace width-body weight relationships of female (A) and male (B) Portunus
pelagicus in Concepcion, Iloilo waters. Figure 3.8. Percentage of Portunus pelagicus and the different bycatch caught by bottom set
gillnet in Concepcion, Iloilo from November 2017 to April 2018

4. Conclusions 5. Acknowledgement
During the wet season P. pelagicus catch had an increasing trend and gradually decreased during dry season. The catch of male P. pelagicus was observed to be increasing This study was funded by Philippine Association
from January to April while in the female, increase was observed from December to February but the occurrence of the sexes did not have any significant difference (p>0.05). Crab Processors, Inc. (PACPI) and assisted by
Also, more P. pelagicus with 12.1-13.0 cm, 13.1-14.0 cm, and 14.1-15.0 cm CW were caught during the wet season. The CW-BW relationship of male and female P. pelagicus the Municipal Agricultural Office of Concepcion,
in Concepcion, Iloilo waters had positive allometric growth (b=3.05) and negative allometric growth (b=2.85), respectively. In addition, the size at first sexual maturity of both Iloilo.
male and female P. pelagicus was 92.5 mm CW. The SPR of the area was 32% indicating that fishing pressure is at the margin of sustainable resource. Thus management of
the crab fishery should be maintained so that the fishing pressure (F/M) will not become higher than the present level (5.46) to prevent any further decrease in the area’s SPR.
Furthermore, the presence of commercially important species such as grouper, caranx and rainbow runner shows that the waters of Concepcion, Iloilo which is directly facing
the Visayan Sea, is a suitable for these diverse species.

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