Variación del color del cuerpo del camarón Cryphiops caementarius durante el ciclo de muda

The aim of the study was to evaluate the body colour variation of the prawn Cryphiops caementarius during the moulting cycle. Eighty-seven adult prawns (50 males and 37 females) with a total length of 5.25 to 8.52 cm were obtained from the Pativilca River (Peru). The stage of the molt cycle was determined by microscopic examination of the inner edge of the uropod exopod. Prawn body colour was evaluated in the raw stage and also after cooking in water at 100 ºC for 2 min. Images of all specimens were taken. The analysis of the digital images was performed in the dorsal and central area of the second abdominal segment and in the dorsal and central area of the posterior end of the cephalothorax. The RGB colour mode of the Adobe Photoshop CS6 program was used for the digital assessment of body colour. The body colour of the raw male prawn is yellowish or light brown in the post-moult and dark brown in the intermoult and pre-moult; and after cooking, it is orange in the post-moult and reddish in the intermoult and pre-moult. The body colour of the female prawn does not vary during the moulting cycle; in raw prawn the colour tone is light brown in the post-moult and in some stages of the pre-moult; on the other hand, after cooking, the colour tone is orange in all stages of the moulting cycle. The dark shade of the body colour only of the raw male prawn were the ones that produced the most intense reddish coloration after cooking. The body colour of raw and cooked male prawn varies with the moulting cycle; in contrast, in the female, both raw and cooked, it is similar during the moulting cycle.