Fish ID Books

[darrenlowjq]

I'm thinking of getting a Fish and/or Critter ID book because I'm becoming more interested in not only photography but also knowing more about the species that I'm shooting. Any recommendations for what you guys would consider to be THE book to get (preferably with an accompanying Amazon link or something)?

 

[koozemani]

Amazon.com: Paul Humann: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle

excellent books, region specific.

 

[PatW]

I would second the Huamon and DeLoach books. They are not cheap. But they are easily the best reference for Caribbean fauna that I have seen. Also, they highlight the diagnostic features. On many fish, they show the various color morphs and differences between juveniles and adults. The major drawback with the set is its weight which makes taking it on a vacation, problematic. However, many resort dive shops have a set on hand for reference.

 

[tursiops]

I would second the Huamon and DeLoach books. They are not cheap. But they are easily the best reference for Caribbean fauna that I have seen. Also, they highlight the diagnostic features. On many fish, they show the various color morphs and differences between juveniles and adults. The major drawback with the set is its weight which makes taking it on a vacation, problematic. However, many resort dive shops have a set on hand for reference.

The books are available on Blio as eBooks.....I carry them on my tablet.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

 

[darrenlowjq]

Yeah, I had looked at those previously. I am likely to be diving more in Asia as that is where I live, anybody own the Pacific ones and can tell me if they are any good?

I was concerned as one of the Amazon reviews stated that there were a lot of critters with pictures but not identified by name. That's really no good to me since lack of identification kind of defeats the purpose in getting the book.

 

[crabbyfiddler]

Reef Fish Identification - Tropical Pacific: Gerald Allen, Roger Steene, Paul Humann, Ned DeLoach: 9781878348364: Amazon.com: Books

and....

RBZ Book Reviews: "Asia Pacific Reef Guide" by Debelius. H. (2001)

 

[Dive Right In Scuba 2]

All of the above mentioned books are amazing, and I own a couple of them. One thing that I use is those laminated foldables that contain visuals of local marine life along with abbreviated descriptions. I use them both in the water and as a science teacher in the classroom, they are rugged and easy to use.

 

[Chugwhump]

Anything by Humann or DeLoach.

Chug
Gots'em all.

 

[tursiops]

I was concerned as one of the Amazon reviews stated that there were a lot of critters with pictures but not identified by name.

I don't understand this comment, unless the review was referring to the Creature ID book.....which has a lot of "undescribed" and "undefined" critters in it. That is the nature of such books; a lot of the Pacific Critters have not been scientifically studied so there is no species ID on them. The Fish ID book doesn't seem to have any such blanks in it; I just scanned through it and did not find even one. But that's the point: there are ten times as many invertebrate species in the Pacific as there are fish species....we don't know what they all are! I don't see this as a valid criticsm of the book.

 

[darrenlowjq]

I don't understand this comment, unless the review was referring to the Creature ID book.....which has a lot of "undescribed" and "undefined" critters in it. That is the nature of such books; a lot of the Pacific Critters have not been scientifically studied so there is no species ID on them. The Fish ID book doesn't seem to have any such blanks in it; I just scanned through it and did not find even one. But that's the point: there are ten times as many invertebrate species in the Pacific as there are fish species....we don't know what they all are! I don't see this as a valid criticsm of the book.

Thanks, yeah that makes sense.