NOTE Ramon and Bartoo: The effects of formalin and freezing on albacore ovaries 
871 
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♦ 1 
a • 
♦ % weight change (formalin) 
□ % weight change (frozen) 
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<%♦♦♦♦ 
♦♦ «* Jo 
□ 
* V* s □ 
* □ ♦ ♦ ♦ * ♦♦ Q n D 
^ ♦ 
♦ 
crv 
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0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 
Fresh ovary weight (g) 
Figure 1 
Percent change in ovary weight (fresh versus preserved) for albacore ovaries versus fresh weight in grams 
for samples collected in Hawaii. 
Table 3 
Mean oocyte diameter (mm) data by ovary weight (g) and preservation method for albacore collected near Hawaii, n = number 
of fish in sample. 
Mean oocyte diameter (mm) 
Ovary weight (g) 
n 
Formalin 
Frozen 
Percent difference 
(formalin vs. frozen) 
ic +/-SE 
Range 
x +/- SE 
Range 
<200 
ii 
0.19 ± 0.031 
0.12-0.48 
0.17 ±0.027 
0.11-0.43 
5.3 
200-299 
i 
0.37 
0.33 
10.8 
>300 
3 
0.59 ± 0.049 
0.50-0.67 
0.55 ± 0.042 
0.48-0.62 
6.8 
Total 
15 
0.28 ± 0.049 
0.12-0.67 
0.26 ± 0.045 
0.11-0.62 
7.1 
of oocytes preserved with Gilson’s fluid shrank an 
average of 24% in comparison with those preserved 
in 4% formalin. This finding is in contrast with that 
of Schaefer and Orange (1956) who also examined 
the effects of Gilson’s fluid versus formalin on oocyte 
diameter. They found that size frequencies for oo- 
cytes were similar with both methods for oocytes in 
the 5-63 p size range. The strength of formalin used 
by Schaefer and Orange was greater than that used 
by Joseph and may be the cause of the different re- 
sults. Itano 1 examined the effects of brine, refrig- 
1 Itano, D. 1994. Progress report on a large-scale investigation 
on the reproductive biology of yellowfin tuna in the central and 
western Pacific region. Fourth meeting of the western Pacific 
yellowfin tuna research group; Koror, Palau, 9-11 August 1994. 
