Marine Life Books

Stare at the beautiful underwater photographs. Sitback, relax and gently discover the Ocean Realm with the still images of Howard Hall and his wife Michele, images that, as Peter Benchley (Jaws, The Deep) writes in the foreword, are among the finest in the world. Dive. Wander through the Kelp forests of the northern Pacific. Get a close-up of sharks and squids in magic detail. Enjoy the vivid colors of the reef and watch lobsters and sea turtles, dolphins and whales in an exciting photographic journey! Since this book is not a reference work, you will also enjoy reading it slowly and in the direction of your choice, diving at pleasure through the light text that describes the Hall's adventures as filmmakers and marine photographers. And then you will also find some information about the sea-life captured in the images and poetic hints about scuba-diving and underwater photography. A nice dive, a pleasant reading and, at the price that Amazon.com is offering it, a real gift. Buy the book!

This is one of the best books I have ever read about the underwater world. Incredibly beautiful underwater photography of high quality. The photos do not only depict animals swimming around but, for example, sarcastic fringehead males in a showy territorial "fight," close up.

I also like the authors' sensible view about animals and diving in the ocean. No show-off accounts of near-shark-escapes but an honest experience, mostly good but sometimes scary, of working under water. The authors recount some extraordinary events, such as a ride on a manta after freeing him from entangling fishing nets, or unexpectedly finding themselves surrounded by a school of fish that is being slaughtered by marlins.

With this book we get a wonderful view into the ocean world but also a fascinating account of what it is like spending many hours a day waiting, scouting, decompressing, refilling tanks and back to waiting so one can capture a never seen one-minute event on film that made it worth all the work.

Sharks of the Pacific Northwest Including Oregon, Washington, British Columbia & Alaska presents the combined wisdom of three marine experts in a beautiful guide to shark species featuring a wealth of gorgeous color photographs, as well as a handful of black-and-white diagrams. Accessible to lay readers, amateur naturalists, and professional researchers alike, Sharks of the Pacific Northwest is not only an identification guide to the 18 species of shark in the Pacific Northwest, but also offers general scientific information concerning the biology of sharks, the truth behind shark/human interaction, and more. In-depth profiles of the nuances of the eighteen species round out this handy guide, which is supplemented by a bibliography and an index. Enthusiastically recommended for anyone seeking to learn more about these wondrous and often misunderstood creatures.

Great Book, full of rare pictures and most important full of great drawings by Dr. Alessandro De Maddalena....
...is perfect for shark fans

Every elasmophile should have this in their library! It's incomparable to anything else out there. Truly an excellent work.

If you are a shark enthusiast, or a student in the biological sciences, this is an excellent book to own. The technical writings are excellent and you would not be able to find them elsewhere, unless your library carries elsamobranch periodicals.

The technical writing is probably too much for the casual shark buff or even first year undergrads, and this is not meant as an introduction to the world of sharks.

If you want to learn the "inner workings of sharks" and don't mind the price, this is a good reference book to own.

The illustrations are wonderful and manage to convey a mysterious and moody aspect to the fish and thier habitat. Although this is a children's book, it had exactly the information that I needed on electric fishes. A fun and interesting book.

This is definitely a great source of learning about a very interesting ability for kids and adults alike.

This handbook literally covers the globe in terms of this group. Since there are relatively few living species of whales, dolphins, and porpoises a single handbook can cover them all, and I believe that this one does.

There is a map of the world in the book that divides the oceans into 8 zones for convenience in discussing geographic ranges of the animals covered in the text.

The book includes overview material on the ecology and natural history of these animals in general. It also has a section dedicated to each individual species. Each species section includes an extremely nice painting of the animal, BW photographs, a narative description of the animal, and information on the animal's range, behavior, natural history, and conservation status.

Overall an excellent handbook on the cetacea.

Not a particularly good field guide, as all cetacean genera and species are covered. I grab this book quite frequently when refreshing my mind on the distribution and distinguishing characteristics of a cetacean outside my field of expertise. For those interested in even more meaty fare, pick up Richard Ellis' 'The Book of Whales' and 'Dolphins and Porpoises'. Both books are must have additions to the serious cetologist's book shelf. My field guide of choice for North Pacific field study: Leatherwood et. al. 'Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises of the Eastern North Pacific and Adjacent Arctic Waters: A guide to their Identification'.

Tony Koslow has written an encyclopedia of the various deep-sea environments. His book contains many fine illustrations, but it makes a fine companion to the wonderful illustrations in The Deep: The Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss by Claire Nouvian.

Koslow focuses on the depths below two hundred meters where sunlight no longer penetrates, the largest habitat on Earth -- ninety percent of all the ocean's water, and eleven times the volume of all the land above the sea. Below six thousand meters lies a region known as the hadal zone; in the Marianas Trench it is 11,000 meters deep.

The hadal zone with its freezing water, heavy pressure, and darkness is seemingly harsh, but the freezing water carries oxygen necessary for life. The pressure is extreme (at four thousand meters it is equivalent to that of a cow standing on your thumbnail) the creatures of the hadal zone don't feel it, because the pressure inside their bodies matches the pressure outside. There is no sunlight, but light from luminescent creatures abounds.

Koslow reviews Otis Barton's and William Beebe's trip in 1931 a quarter of a mile down in a "bathysphere." Beebe reported that the clear sea stretched endlessly, and was so full of luminescence that it sparkled like the night sky. Black shrimps, transparent eels, and bizarre fish approached and shadows and shifting patches of light hovered just out of view. Below lay a world that "looked like the black pit-mouth of hell itself."

On January 23, 1960, Swiss scientist and engineer Jacques Piccard and US Navy lieutenant Don Walsh dove to the bottom in Trieste. At 10,910 meters, Piccard glimpsed a flat, fish-like creature moving away. That observation is all we know of higher life at the bottom of the hadal zone; we haven't returned since that visit.

A robot called Kaiko has explored more of the hadal zone, and has discovered a fragile, floating world of jelly life, organisms that are able to exist only because the water is so still that currents don't tear them apart. On the very bottom Kaiko found sea cucumbers, worms, and giant single-celled organisms up to twenty-five centimeters across which feed on the slow rain of organic matter from the surface. Kaiko was lost in 2003 and has not been replaced.

Koslow describes many wonders; one among many is the black seadevil. The female the size and shape of a grapefruit with and enormous mouth and a "fishing rod" between its eyes with luminescent bait. The male is tiny, feeding on scraps until he meets and bites his mate. Over time he becomes totally dependent on his mate receiving food, oxygen, and hormones from her blood. Only his testicles continue to function, but only at the pleasure of the female. When she is done with him, he is completely absorbed, and the female seeks another mate.

Koslow describes threats to the ocean: the dumping of toxic (and sometimes radioactive) waste, the accumulation of heavy metals such as mercury and cadmium, the build-up of toxic chemicals such as PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and DDT, the damage caused by offshore oil rigs and over-fishing, and the potential damage that may be caused by seabed mining and carbon dioxide sequestration.

The book advocates various measures to protect ocean environments about which we know very little. Koslow endorses E.O. Wilson: "Man is defined not by what he creates, but by what he chooses not to destroy."

I ordered this book hoping for more amazing photographs of newly-discovered deep-sea species like I found in "The Deep", but I got much, much more than that. The review of deep-sea ecology was both incredibly interesting and not too difficult for someone without much experience in marine biology. I was glued to this book, and finished it was a new desire to follow the field of deep-sea research as it continues to develop. It was a great book for someone who is not familiar with the history and ecology of the deep sea to get a firm grasp on what is happening down there, and how our picture of life in the deep ocean has been turned on it's head. The section on conservation was good as well, and illustrated clearly and consisly how human activies specifically affect the environment in the deep sea realm.

I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in deep sea research - it was the perfect follow-up to "The Deep", with it's tantalizing photos of the unbelievable animals that live at such depths.

Item as described and received in a timely manner... an excellent buying experience!

A great book. I already know it by heart, and my 2 yrs old has favorite pages...
Beautiful illustrations, wonderful pop-ups. Sturdy enough to get through my daughter's leafing without harm.

This book shows you a week in the life of a fictional Marine
airfighting squadron.The author is a graduate of the U.S. Naval
Academy.He also has extensive air combat experience in the "Top
Gun" school and also had time in Operation Desert Storm.
The flying squadron that is portrayed in this book is enforcing
a no=fly zone over Bosnia.This novel show how crew members deal
with being members of the squadron.On Monday an unnamed narrator reminisces about his former F-18D squadron.Tuesday and Wednesday
shows the emotions felt by the crew members.The crew members are
Ghost,Pope,Dago,Joisey,Hick Boy,Spine Ripper,Butt Munch,Hollywood
and other members.Thursday has five very tragic events which
causes complications for offensive air operations on Friday.The
book ends with a where are they now epilogue.
This was a well written book on the history of this air squad-
ron.Buy this book. You will enjoy reading it.

"Speed is Life, More is Better" rings with authenticity, looking at the daily life of Marine Aviators assigned to combat air patrol over hostile territory. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and believed every moment of what I was reading - from tense standoffs in the air, to bull sessions at chow to dealing with the personalities of your squadronmates. The book swings from suspense to action to personal drama to high humor without missing a beat, and you're right there with the characters the whole way.

Throughout, you get the sense that its been written by someone who's spent a lot of time in military aircraft, observing fellow aviators at close quarters. As it turns out, the author was a Marine Aviator, and was shot down over Iraq. He's obviously drawing on his own experience.

I learned a lot about the F-18D in this book, and gained new sympathy for the men of Marine Aviation. Like most non-pilots, I always presumed that Fighter pilots and "Backseaters" flew along in air-conditioned comfort with nary a care, and slept peacefully at night in comfortable quarters.

By contrast, in "Speed is Life, More is Better", the unit is deployed in a Tent City, set up right next to the runway, flying nonstop day and night missions. The men are tired, saddle sore and frustrated by the rules of engagement and the trivialities that accompany military life. Even so, they're doing their duty, and earning their pay in a tense environment that pushes them and their equipment beyond the breaking point. I felt real fear for the characters' fates, and was particularly struck by an incident near the end of the book that reminded me of a tragedy that occurred in an old unit of mine.

This view into this side of Military Life was one I never had before. I think any aviator, history buff or aircraft enthusiast would enjoy the book, and that anyone in the military would empathize with it.

As a former enlisted man, I'd recommend it to anyone whose ever been in any branch of service, but also particularly to Cadets at the Service academies and ROTC students. It would open their eyes, and give them a sense for the sacrifices - and the rewards - of real military life. If there's any justice, "Speed is Life, More is Better" should be in every "Stars & Stripes" bookstore, library and PX/BX at every military post in the world.

When I first met Col. Jack McGuckin at church several years ago, I would not have believed any Christian I knew could have lived such an exciting life. I got to hear him speak several times, and his messages were just as exciting as his book. Even my children, who were very young at the time, were captivated by him. I got a copy of his book as soon as it was published. Keep some tissues handy because you will need them for the tears of laughter as well as tears of sadness.
This book will be enjoyed by all--male, female, young, old, believer or not. This is a keeper. When you're feeling down, just take this book out and read about the goony birds, and your spirits will be lifted in a hurry.

Wow! What a life! What a testimony! Col. McGuckin's story is amazing! He lived his new life in Christ by Galatians 2:20 "I am crucified with Christ..." and was willing to go where others would not. He flew many missionaries to the needy of many populations. But, he didn't just drop off the missionaries. For example: High in the mountains of Peru, he evangelized a group of "head-shrinkers" and even the witch-doctor gave his life to Christ! A true inspiration for us today... to nudge us into our own purpose and plan!

From back cover:
Jack McGuckin entered US Naval flight training in June 1941, and was commissioned second lieutenant in the Marine Corps in May 1942. He saw action above Midway and Guadalcanal in dive bombers and fighters - including a brief stint with Greg "Pappy" Boyington's Black Sheep Squadron - logging a total of 1,000 hours in the air on 90 missions. Col. McGuckin remained in Marine aviation after WWII to see further service during the Korean conflict, where he put in 2500 jet-hours in 40 combat sorties. His awards include the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, Bronze Star and Presidential Citation as well as other decorations.
...Five years after the truce in Korea, Jack McGuckin [gave] his life to Christ and was soon back in the air as he had been so many times before in service to his country - this time in service to the Lord. His exciting story is an inspiration to Christians - and non-Christians - everywhere!

Very interesting,well explained, and informative book.Definitely one to consider if you like this series.The book explains all about how sponges live,and how they are harvested.It also briefly explains the difference between a natural sponge and a synthetic sponge.

Very nice book about sea sponges. I use it in my elementary school and the kids love it. Gives great info on elementary level of the science and harvesting of sea sponges.