THE HEMATOLOGY OF TRIPLOID LANDLOCKED ATLANTIC SALMON, SALMO-SALAR L

Triploid landlocked Atlantic salmon had a larger mean erythrocyte volume but lower erythrocyte count than diploids; the hematocrit was the same in diploids and triploids. Although the total blood Hb content and the mean corpuscular Hb concentration were lower in triploids than in diploids, the actual mean corpuscular Hb content of triploid erythrocytes was higher than that of diploids. The increase in triploid mean erythrocyte volume was mainly due to an increase in cell length; there was only a minor increase in cell width and no increase in cell height. The nucleus of triploid erythrocytes occupied a greater percentage of the corpuscular volume than did the diploid nucleus. Mean cytoplasmic Hb concentration was found to be the same for diploids and triploids when this was taken into account.