PHYSIOLOGICAL STUDIES OF THE CHINOOK SALMON. 



451 



THE OVARIAN LIQUID FROM MATURE FEMALE SALMON. 



A quantity of serous liquid, the ovarian fluid of Miescher-Russch, is always found 

 in the abdominal cavity of the ripe females, the liquid being extruded with the eggs. 

 This liquid is easily collected during the artificial spawning. It amounts to from 

 loo to 150 cubic centimeters, but varies greatly in quantity in different individuals. 



Determinations of the freezing point were made on series of samples of this 

 ovarian liquid in the summers of 11*01 and 1902. Females to be spawned were very 

 carefully freed from excess of water by wiping with dry cloths and the eggs spawned 

 into a clean dry spawning pan. The liquid extruded with the eggs was strained 

 through dry cleansed cheese-cloth into prepared bottles. The method of collecting 

 did not admit of contamination at any point. The depression of the freezing point 

 produced by these samples is given in the table below: 



Table XII. — Depression of the freezing point produced by the ovarian liquid from ripe salmon from the 



spawning beds at Baird, Cal. 



The determinations reported in this table are remarkable for uniformity in result. 

 There is only one noteworthy exception to the statement, viz., No. 212. In this fish 

 the concentration of the ovarian liquid is exceptionally low. By reference to Table 

 XI it will be seen that the blood of this fish also is very low, being — 0.072 c C. below 

 the average in concentration. Leaving aside the ovarian fluid of No. 212, then the 

 averages of determinations on the ovarian liquids for the two seasons agree within 

 one point in one thousand, being —0.555 and —0.554 for 1901 and 1902, respectively. 

 The concentration of the liquid from the abdominal cavity is less than that of the 

 blood or the serum. The following tables give sets of determinations made on the 

 ovarian fluid, the serum, and the whole blood from the same animal (Table XIII), and 

 on the serum and ovarian liquid (Table XIV). 



