325 
Abstract— The influences of age, 
size, and condition of spawning fe- 
males on fecundity and oocyte qual- 
ity were analyzed for the Patagonian 
stock of Argentine Hake (. Merluccius 
hubbsi). Samples of mature females 
were collected in the spawning area 
as part of 2 research surveys con- 
ducted in January 2010 and 2011, 
during the peak of the reproductive 
season. Batch fecundity (BF) ranged 
between 40,500 (29 cm total length 
[TL] ) and 2,550,000 (95 cm TL) hy- 
drated oocytes, and was positively 
correlated with TL, gutted weight, 
age, hepatosomatic index (HSI), and 
the relative condition factor (Kn). 
Relative fecundity ranged between 
85 and 1040 hydrated oocytes g _1 
and showed significant positive re- 
lationships with gutted weight, HSI, 
and Kn; however, coefficients of de- 
termination were low for all regres- 
sions. Dry weights of samples of 100 
hydrated oocytes ranged between 1.8 
and 3.95 mg and were positively cor- 
related with all variables analyzed, 
including batch and relative fecun- 
dity. Multiple regression models cre- 
ated with data of the morphophysi- 
ological characteristics of females 
supported maternal influences on 
fecundity and egg weights. Within 
the studied size range (29-95 cm 
TL), larger individuals had better 
somatic and egg condition, mainly 
revealed by higher HSI and hydrat- 
ed oocytes with larger oil droplets 
(275.71pm [standard error 1.49]). 
These results were associated with 
the higher feeding activity of larger 
females during the spawning season 
in comparison with the feeding ac- 
tivity of young individuals (<5 years 
old); the better nutritional state of 
larger females, assumed to result 
from more feeding, was conducive to 
greater production of high-quality 
eggs. 
Manuscript submitted 11 January 2013. 
Manuscript accepted 7 August 2013. 
Fish. Bull. 111:325-336. 
doi: 10. 7755/FB. 111.4.3 
The views and opinions expressed or 
implied in this article are those of the 
author (or authors) and do not necesarily 
reflect the position of the National 
Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. 
Maternal effects on fecundity and egg quality 
of the Patagonian stock of Argentine Hake 
( Merluccius hubbsi ) 
Gustavo J. Macchi (contact author) 1 - 2 
Ezequiel Leonarduzzi 2 
Marina V. Diaz 2 
Marta Renzi 2 
Karina Rodrigues 12 
Email address for contact author; gmacchi@inidep.edu.ar 
1 Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientfficas y Tecnicas (CON ICED 
Av. Rivadavia 1917 
C1033AAJ Buenos Aires, Argentina 
2 Instituto Nacional de Investigacion y Desarrollo Pesquero (INIDEP) 
Paseo Victoria Ocampo Nro. 1 
B7602HSA Mar del Plata, Argentina 
The Argentine Hake (Merluccius 
hubbsi), with a biomass of around 
700,000 metric tons (t) estimated 
from virtual population analysis in 
2009, is one of the most important 
fish resources for the Argentine 
fleet (Irusta and Datri 1 ; Villarino 
and Santos 2 ). Two main stocks have 
been identified in the Argentine Sea: 
the northern group (between 34° and 
41°S) and the southern group (be- 
tween 41° and 55°S). The latter group, 
known also as the Patagonian stock, 
is the most abundant population of 
this species, accounting for about 85% 
of the total biomass estimated for this 
1 Irusta, C. G., and L. D’Atri. 2010. 
Evaluacion del estado del efectivo norte 
de 41° S de la merluza ( Merluccius 
hubbsi) y estimacion de la Captura Bio- 
logicamente Aceptable para el ano 2011. 
INIDEP Informe Tecnico Oficial No. 42, 
28 p. [Available from INIDEP, Paseo 
Victoria Ocampo Nro. 1, B7602HSA Mar 
del Plata, Argentina. 
2 Villarino, M. F., and B. Santos. 2010. 
Evaluacion del estado de explotacion 
del efectivo sur de 41° S de la merlu- 
za ( Merluccius hubbsi ) y estimacion de 
las capturas biologicamente aceptables 
correspondiente al ano 2011. INIDEP 
Informe Tecnico Oficial No. 43, 27 p. 
[Available from INIDEP, Paseo Victoria 
Ocampo Nro. 1, B7602HSA Mar del Pla- 
ta, Argentina.] 
fish resource in Argentina (Aubone et 
al., 2000). This fishery historically 
has registered the most important 
commercial landings for Argentina, 
with annual catches between 170,000 
and 370,000 t since 2000 (Sanchez et 
al., 2012). Nevertheless, during the 
1990s, both stocks of Argentine Hake 
suffered overexploitation and their 
spawning biomass decreased drasti- 
cally, and changes also were observed 
in the parent-stock structure (Aubone 
et al., 2000). 
It has been shown that the repro- 
ductive potential of a fish stock is 
strongly influenced by the size and 
age of spawning females. During the 
reproductive season, older and larg- 
er individuals produce more oocytes 
than younger and smaller spawners 
because fecundity and spawning fre- 
quency are higher in larger females 
and, in general, their reproductive 
period is longer than the period of 
smaller spawners (Marshall et al., 
1998; Marteinsdottir and Thora- 
rinsson, 1998; Marteinsdottir and 
Begg, 2002; Macchi et al, 2004; Me- 
hault et al., 2010). Therefore, varia- 
tion in length composition of a fish 
stock caused by fishing activity or by 
other sources of mortality would af- 
fect the number of eggs spawned at 
