Volume 8 | Issue - 7
Volume 8 | Issue - 7
Volume 8 | Issue - 6
Volume 8 | Issue - 6
Volume 8 | Issue - 6
The marine crab Ocypode cursor, occurring along the Ivorian coastline and at Kribi in Cameroon, is subjected to multiple pressures that may induce morphometric modifications. In order to obtain preliminary data on the biology of this species and to establish the structuring of these crabs along the Ivorian coast and at Kribi in Cameroon, a study of morphometric diversity based on 11 morphometric measurements was conducted on 101 specimens of O. cursor collected from Grand-Bassam, San-Pedro, and Kribi (Cameroon). The results showed that crabs from Grand-Bassam and San-Pedro exhibited a higher mean carapace width compared to those from Kribi. Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Discriminant Factorial Analysis (DFA), and Canonical Variable Analysis (CVA) performed on the morphometric data allowed the distinction of two groups within this species. Group 1 consisted mainly of individuals from Kribi, characterized by a longer telson (TL) and more developed right and left dactyl lengths (RDL and LDL). Group 2 comprised individuals from Grand-Bassam and San-Pedro, distinguished by greater carapace length and width (CL and CW), basal carapace length (BL), and thorax width (TW). Overall, anthropogenic and environmental pressures exert a significant impact on the structuring of these populations inhabiting the western coast of the Atlantic Ocean