LAUSR

Abstract This study investigated the effects of temperature and cooling mode on hemolymph indicators, including total protein, hemocyanin, urea nitrogen, ammonia, uric acid, carbon dioxide (CO2) and pH levels, of swimming crabs, Portunus trituberculatus, under air-exposure stress at different times. The swimming crabs were exposed to air at temperatures ranging from 0 °C to 25 °C to determine the optimal temperature. Results showed that the crabs exhibited the highest survival rate at 10 °C. After exposure to air-exposure stress at 10 °C, the gill lamella moisture content and surface humidity of the swimming crabs decreased as the air-exposure time increased. With prolonged air-exposure time, the hemolymph urea, ammonia and CO2 of the swimming crabs under air-exposure stress increased, and the hemolymph pH value of the swimming crabs slightly decreased. These results indicated that the swimming crabs had the highest survival rate under air exposure at 10 °C.