Morphometric variation among male populations of freshwater shrimp Macrobrachium vollenhovenii Herklots, 1851 from Côte d’Ivoire Rivers

Males of freshwater prawns (Macrobrachium vollenhovenii) were sampled from four rivers in Côte d’Ivoire to determine whether populations could be discriminated on the basis of morphometric variability. A total of 260 specimens (65 from each river) were investigated using 21 measurements. Multivariate analyses were applied to the data. Morphometrics characteristics showed more or less greater discriminatory power to distinguish individuals from different rivers. Coefficient of variation result revealed globally a low intra-population variation (CV < 25% for all characters). Multivariates analyses indicated that the four populations were more or less differentiated on the basis of body characters particularly those related to the second pereiopod. Cluster analysis showed morphological variation between Bia population and Sassandra, Bandama and Commé populations was greater, while Sassandra and Bandama specimens were more morphologically similar. The patterns of morphometric variability in M. vollenhovenii male are largely determined by the local environmental conditions and distance geographical distance between sampling sites. If these results are corroborated by further biological evidence (such as geometric morphometry and genetic) including females, there is a strong argument for subdivision of Côte d’Ivoire stock of M. vollenhovenii.