Groupers of the World: A Field and Market Guide

Groupers of the World is a detailed but easy-to-use guide to all of the more than 160 recognised species, of these mostly large, colourful tropical reef fishes, also known as rockcod. The book has detailed line drawings of each species and more than 350 colour photographs depicting the living fish in their natural habitat as well as dead specimens, mostly photographed in markets. Photographs show distinctive colour differences between adults and juveniles, as well as regional colour variations. The wealth of photographs and illustrations together with clear descriptions allow for reliable identification of any of the species, even by those unfamiliar with groupers. Together with the outstanding photographs of these remarkable and important fishes, Groupers of the World has up-to-date biological, ecological and population information for each species. Individual colour maps and descriptions summarise the known distribution of each of the groupers. Groupers are increasingly being harvested for the live food fish trade, and many species are experiencing serious population declines. The IUCN Species Survival Commission (Groupers & Wrasses Specialist Group) has been responsible for compiling the available data so as to evaluate the status and present a summary of threats to each species. The bibliography of almost 1000 references will be very useful to anyone working in the field. Groupers of the World: a Field and Market Guide is an indispensable publication for fisheries scientists and managers as well as divers, anglers and those with an interest in reef fishes in general.