Mandibular Organ:Its Relation to Body Weight, Sex, Molting and Reproduction in the Fresh Water Field Crab Oziotelphusa senex Senex Fabricius

Mandibular organ is one of the recently discovered crustacean endocrine glands. Methyl farnesoate is the principle secretory product of mandibular gland. Methyl farnesoate is an unepoxidate form of insect juvenile hormone III. The involvement of methyl farnesoate in the regulation of molting and reproduction is well documented in several crustaceans. In the present study, the dynamics of mandibular organ in the crab Oziotelphusa senex senex was studied as a function of sex, body weight, molting and reproduction. The size of mandibular organ exhibited a positive correlation with the body weight.