Biology of Fishes

When I took ichthyology in college, this was the textbook. The instructor was not terribly excited about it, but thought it was better than the one used previously. This is a good overview that covers a lot of territory. If you are looking for a catalogue of fishes, this is probably not what you want, but if you want to know something such as feeding strategies, you'll find just about every one of them covered along with an example. One of the problems with covering a lot of topics is that undue attention is given to examples that otherwise might not merit such attention. For example some large fish families don't get that much attention while others which may be smaller, but more specialized, get more attention to illustrate how they are different. The result is that if you are looking for detailed information about a certain group, you are not going to find it. However if you want to know about fishes as a whole, this will get you there. There is a black and white photograph, but otherwise the illustrations are all drawings. Some of the drawings are obviously taken from photographs while others are more stylized. Many of the drawings are anatomical illustrations showing organs and structures in a way that could not be photographed anyway. The price of the book probably has to do with being a college textbook. I paid a lot less for it 22 years ago. The passage of time has not diminished the usefulness of the book and this edition is a later one than the one I have. For today's market, I would say that this book is good value for the money.

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