Written during a long sea voyage from England through the Mediterranean, "Civilization and the Limpet" unveils many fascinating phenomena of undersea life. Wells captures with exquisite detail how limpets, like bees, navigate by the stars; how the brainless sea urchin makes a myriad of critical survival decisions every day; how "deserted islands" teem with an incredible abundance of animal life; and why deep-diving whales never get the bends. Elegant and finely crafted, "Civilization and the Limpet" will enlighten, amuse, and awe anyone interested in the natural world.

"Moving, intelligent and, in the best sense, literary.... Stephen Harrigan is anchored in reality; he knows that the environment he's describing is in serious jeopardy. At the same time, he has made this book sparkle with his remarkable ability to discuss the metaphysical and spiritual aspects of underwater exploration without ever sounding saccharine or murky." -- New York Times Book Review "[Harrigan] tells us about the people who live on Grand Turk, or come there on business, and he is given to reflecting on the subtleties of the underwater experience, but his real virtue as a writer is his ability to convey, in precise, lucid, prose, the marvels of the sea bottom." -- New Yorker "Harrigan ...captures the peacefulness of being rocked by salty currents, the massive beauty of the reefs, the exhilaration of the sport, and the mental scramble to retain fast-fading memories of sights almost unimaginable on land. Fellow divers will relish his camaraderie, while those who prefer staying topside will feel as though they've taken the plunge themselves." -- Booklist

This evocative account of the months Stephen Harrigan spent diving on the coral reefs off Grand Turk Island in the Caribbean was originally published by Houghton Mifflin in 1992.

Many marine mammals communicate by emitting sounds that pass through water. Such sounds can be received across great distances and can influence the behavior of these undersea creatures. In the past few decades, the oceans have become increasingly noisy, as underwater sounds from propellers, sonars, and other human activities make it difficult for marine mammals to communicate. This book discusses, among many other topics, just how well marine mammals hear, how noisy the oceans have become, and what effects these new sounds have on marine mammals. The baseline of ambient noise, the sounds produced by machines and mammals, the sensitivity of marine mammal hearing, and the reactions of marine mammals are also examined.
An essential addition to any marine biologist's library, Marine Mammals and Noise will be especially appealing to marine mammalogists, researchers, policy makers and regulators, and marine biologists and oceanographers using sound in their research.

Intertidal Fishes describes the fishes inhabiting the narrow strip of habitat between the high and low tide marks along the rocky coastlines of the world. It analyzes the specialized traits of these fishes that have adapted to living in the dynamic and challenging space where they are alternately exposed to the air and submerged in water with the ebb and flow of the tides. This book provides a comprehensive account of fishes largely overlooked in many previous studies of intertidal organisms and emphasizes how they differ from fishes living in other deeper-water habitats. Coverage includes air breathing, movements and homing, sensory systems, spawning and parental care, feeding habits, community structure, systematic relationships, distribution patterns, and the fossil record in the intertidal zone.
Key Features
* Written by an international team of 21 experts on intertidal fish biology
* Worldwide coverage of intertidal fishes
* Comprehensive phylogenetic listing of all fish families with intertidal members
* Global biogeographic analysis involving over 700 species from 86 sites
* Outlines field and laboratory methods pertinent to studying intertidal fishes
* Thorough ecological coverage with chapters on vertical distribution, movements and homing, reproduction, feeding, and community structure
* Covers the physiology of aerial and aquatic respiration, osmoregulation, and sensory systems

When Mildred and John Teal moved to Sapelo Island, Georgia, in 1955, they stepped back in time to a virtually undeveloped landscape of salt marsh, maritime forest, freshwater ponds, sand dunes, and beaches. Over the course of a four-year stay their careful observations of the island's unique marine ecology and wonderfully varied flora and fauna became the basis for Portrait of an Island . The island's human history dates back more than four thousand years. The lure of Sapelo has drawn many to its shores, including tobacco millionaire R. J. Reynolds, who established the University of Georgia Marine Institute there in the 1950s. Surrounded by sixteen thousand acres of pristine marsh, Sapelo offers researchers and the public a rare opportunity for environmental studies. Now a state game refuge and national estuarine sanctuary, the island remains a special haven where humans and nature quietly and peacefully coexist. Portrait of an Island is essential reading for anyone who treasures tranquility.

River systems involve a complex interaction of a rich diversity of microorganisms, plants and animals with their physical and chemical environment. Uniquely, the river habitat presents particular problems for organisms exposed to unidirectional currents, seasonal variation in flow, and disturbance due to pollution and other human interference. Drawing on chapters from the two volumes of The Rivers Handbook, this book describes river organisms - the taxa, their adaptations and ecologies, and their trophic interactions. After considering the principles, practice and problems associated with making reliable observations on river organisms, the final chapters investigate how river biota are impacted by human activity, and how in turn they can be used as indicators of these effects in river management. Aimed at final-year undergraduate and postgraduate students, the book will also be of interest to all those concerned with river conservation, including environmental scientists, river engineers and river managers.

"Freshwater Marshes "was first published in 1994. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions.

Prairie potholes, wetland edges of lakes and rivers, and other freshwater marshes play a vital role in maintaining a clean and plentiful water supply for wildlife and human use. These wetland areas provide habitat for spawning fish, feed waterfowl, purify and retain water, and control erosion. In this updated third edition, Milton W. Weller describes the components of the freshwater marsh: its annual and seasonal dynamics as affected by rainfall cycles and the plant and animal population's response to such changes. Weller discusses how such wetland areas are managed for wildlife populations and diversity, and how such processes can be used in wetland conservation and restoration. He considers the impact society has on wetlands and offers conservation goals for freshwater wetland complexes. Weller broadens the third edition to include an analysis of how prairie wetlands compare in water dynamics with swamps, tidal marshes, and other wetlands. He also expands the discussion of wetland classification, evaluation, mitigation, and restoration, and introduces a new glossary of current wetland terminology.

"Freshwater Marshes " is Volume 1 of Wildlife Habitats.

Milton W. Weller is professor emeritus and former Kleberg Chair in Wildlife Ecology, at Texas A&M University.

This book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date review of the ecology of coral reef fishes presented by top researchers from North America and Australia. Immense strides have been made over the past twenty years in our understanding of ecological systems in general and of reef fish ecology in particular. Many of the methodologies that reef fish ecologists use in their studies will be useful to a wider audience of ecologists for the design of their ecological studies. Significant among the impacts of the research on reef fish ecology are the development of nonequilibrium models of community organization, more emphasis on the role of recruitment variability in structuring local assemblages, the development and testing of evolutionary models of social organization and reproductive biology, and new insights into predator-prey and plant-herbivore interactions.

Published ecological information on Latin American coasts is scarce, despite the growing need for a comprehensive examination of coastal processes on a global scale. This book brings together details on benthic marine algae, seagrasses, salt marsh, mangrove, and dune plant communities throughout Latin America.
Researchers and graduate students in plant ecology, marine biology, and environmental management will benefit from the valuable information in this book.
Key Features
* Distribution and community ecology
* Modern research approaches
* coastal management possibilities

Artificial habitats have been used for centuries to successfully modify environments for the benefit of Man. In the aquatic environment, the use of artificial habitat technologies is of growing interest worldwide. Opportunities exist in both developed and developing nations to apply these technologies in many areas, including classical scientific investigations of ecosystem structure and function, engineering advances in underwater technology, and fisheries and environmental management.
The applications of artificial habitat technologies are taking on ever greater economic, social, and environmental importance globally, not only in developed countries such as Japan where highly sophisticated technologies are used, but also in developing nations, where lower cost practices are in use. There is growing pressure to increase production, while at the same time preserve or enhance the environments and ecosystems surrounding fisheries.
This book provides a comprehensive review of the facts, issues, and global trends emerging regarding the use of artificial habitats in aquatic ecosystems. It presents the most recent scientific advances in ecology and engineering technologies related to the building of artificial habitats, and it also presents many of the fisheries management and socioeconomic and environmental issues.
Artificial Habitats for Marine and Freshwater Fisheries will be of interest to a broad audience including natural resource scientists, planners, and managers, particularly those interested in aquatic and fisheries science and management; organizations and individuals interested in commercial and recreational fishing; ecologists; environmental economists, engineers, lawyers, and social scientists; and geographers.
Key Features
* Presents a global scope
* Draws together, for the first time, disparate literature
* Contains contributions by authors in the United States and Japan
* Features engineering chapters that focus on Japanese advanced technology often not available to the English language audience

To the casual visitor, the Gulf of Mexico shores offer mainly sun, sand, and sea. Even the standard field guides, focused on one group of animals or plants, barely hint at the wealth and diversity of habitats and species along Gulf shores. Shore Ecology of the Gulf of Mexico, using a "whole habitat" approach, breaks new ground in describing all the conspicuous vascular plants, algae, birds, mammals, mollusks, crustaceans, and other invertebrates for each marine habitat. The area covered begins west of the Mississippi delta in Louisiana and follows the shores west and south to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. Transitions between habitats also receive detailed treatment. The authors discuss changes in flora and fauna that result from differences in climate, shore geology, and patterns of precipitation in the succeeding habitats along the Gulf rim. They include discussion of more than 1,000 species of plants and animals, both on shore and in the near-shore subtidal zone, to give a virtually complete picture of western Gulf coast ecosystems. Excellent line drawings and photographs of over 800 species complement the text. For marine scientists, students, and knowledgeable beachcombers, this is a thorough source on Gulf coast marine life.

The Late, Great Lakes is a powerful indictment of man's carelessness, ignorance, and apathy toward the Great Lakes. With the longest continuous coastline in the United States, they hold one-fifth of the world's freshwater supply. Author William Ashworth presents a compelling history of the Great Lakes, from their formation in the Ice Age, to their "discovery" by Samuel de Champlian in 1615, and, finally, to their impending death in our time. Ashworth systematically deals with the wild life that once flourished in the region-beaver, salmon, whitefish, and trout-and describes the threatening elements which have displaced them-the predatory sea lamprey, the alewives, toxic waste, and volatile solids.

A revised edition of the classic work, originally published by the Peabody Museum of Salem. One of the best handbooks available for those interested in exploring the seashore populations and general ecology of northern New England waters and Cape Ann. The perfect companion guide for the serious student of marine biology or the enthusiastic amateur adventurer and ecologist. "A new printing of this book could not be more timely. If you take it and go down to the water, I imagine you will return again and again, and like the authors, be inspired to love and protect the sea that is all about us." From the Foreword by Deborah Cramer, Author of Smithsonian Ocean: Our Water Our World "The Sea is All About Us has been a treasured guide for over 40 years and endures as the best handbook available for exploring this stretch of New England coast. I am delighted that it has been updated and reprinted, so I can continue to recommend it for all who seek to know more about this region's remarkable marine and coastal habitats." Jane Winchell, The Sarah Fraser Robbins Director, Art & Nature Center, Peabody Essex Museum "A very useful companion for a trip to this fascinating habitat, whether it is your first trip to the tide zone or you are returning to visit 'slimy old friends.'" Edward S. Gilfillan, Bowdoin College "I am delighted to see this field guide being reprinted. It was a welcome text for laymen and field biology classes 40 years ago and has stood the test of time." Sandra E. Shumway, University of Connecticut "You are holding in your hot little hands one of the best field companions to the intertidal marine life of Cape Ann and the Gulf of Maine. More than just a dry taxonomic guide, Robbins and Yentsch do a superb job of making sense of the diverse intertidal environments of northern New England. Designed to be thrown in your backpack along with your water, hat and binoculars, it will help you interpret the secret world found in those intertidal cracks and crevices, a magical world of unbelievable biodiversity and wonder. Rachel Carson would be proud " Barney Balch, Bigelow Lab for Ocean Sciences, East Boothbay, Maine

Geoinformatics for Marine and Coastal Management provides a timely and valuable assessment of the current state of the art geoinformatics tools and methods for the management of marine systems. This book focuses on the cutting-edge coverage of a wide spectrum of activities and topics such as GIS-based application of drainage basin analysis, contribution of ontology to marine management, geoinformatics in relation to fisheries management, hydrography, indigenous knowledge systems, and marine law enforcement. The authors present a comprehensive overview of the field of Geoinformatic Applications in Marine Management covering key issues and debates with specific case studies illustrating real-world applications of the GIS technology. This "box of tools" serves as a long-term resource for coastal zone managers, professionals, practitioners, and students alike on the management of oceans and the coastal fringe, promoting the approach of allowing sustainable and integrated use of oceans to maximize opportunities while keeping risks and hazards to a minimum.

The poor quality of water, as well as its restricted supply and availability, is one of the biggest challenges of our time, with presently two-fifth's of the world's population unable to find adequate fresh water for essential usage. Over 40 years' research has been carried out on the positive effects that rhythms and specific water flow has on water's capacity to support life. Energizing Water presents this cutting-edge research to the general and professional reader at a time when interest in finding solutions to water's huge worldwide problems is growing rapidly. Three aspects determine water quality: its chemical constituents (including its oxygen levels); its organic aspects (with the danger of contamination by effluent, pathogens and algae); and its 'energetic' nature. The latter facet has been recognized from time immemorial by traditional societies, who have developed their own sciences in relation to water quality, using terms such as prana and chi for energy. Now, through the introduction of quantum physics into the life sciences, modern science is beginning to accept this concept, measuring energy as light emission. Research into energetic water quality - and particularly into the creation of moulded surfaces that support biological purification of the chemical and organic elements, as well as enlivening the energetic attributes - goes back to George Adams' and John Wilkes' pioneering work in the 1960s. The invention of Flowform technology in 1970 carried this research further, providing the world with one of the first modern-day, biomimicry eco-technologies. This creative technology applies nature's best methods to produce extraordinary results, and this book outlines the background story on research and application of the Flowform method today.

This monograph includes seven chapters, each presenting recent advancements in the field of marine biology. Chapter One describes how the biodiversity of the Mediterranean marine environment has changed due to climate change and species invasions and proposes policy suggestions. Chapter Two discusses an integrated ecotoxicological view on elasmobranch conservation regarding chemical contamination alongside potential ecological outcomes for this group and human impacts derived from elasmobranch consumption. Chapter Three congregates information about the morphological traits of crabs to lay a foundation for a better understanding of taxonomic and phylogenetic studies, ecological studies, and the stock assessment and management of commercially important species. Chapter Four shows how foraminiferal associations are influenced by nutrients and abiotic factors that control the carbonate production in the modern outer shelf of Rio Grande do Norte, in the region of Acu Reefs. Chapter Five describes the first satellite tagging research project in the southern Gulf of Mexico for bottlenose dolphins. Chapter Six investigates the threat posed by cutaneous fibropapillomatosis, a tumor that arises on the skin or internal organs of sea turtles and affects up to 97% of this population. Finally, Chapter Seven discusses the eco-biology, exploitation and social aspects related to the common octopus along the Kerkennah Island in the South Center of the Mediterranean Sea.

Cnidarians are elegant and dazzling aquatic organisms, but despite their beauty they are known to be a threat in many coastal areas around the world. Several species of cnidaria living in tropical or sub-tropical areas are remarkably dangerous, but many Mediterranean species can also cause serious health problems. Really, cnidarians (sea anemones, corals, medusae) are considered among the most dangerous and venomous organisms, thanks to the occurrence in their tissues of batteries of intracellular capsules (nematocysts or cnidocysts) produced by the Golgi apparatus of specialized cells (nematocytes or cnidocytes) from which the phylum Cnidaria takes the name (from the Greek II"I-I'I* = nettle). The consequences of human encounters with cnidarians vary widely, from simple skin irritation to serious anaphylactic manifestations in sensitive subjects. During the last few decades, cnidarians have been perceived as increasingly dangerous due to recurrent jellyfish outbreaks which constitute a threat both for human health and economy and for the environmental equilibrium. In addition, the occurrence of alien species, whose spread is facilitated by human activities, environmental changes, global warming, or man-made modifications of the natural features of territories, pose new and serious challenges to environmental management. For all these reasons, cnidarians can be viewed as a problem. Nevertheless, cnidarians are also viewed with particular interest due to their potential in the field of natural products. Scientists have realized the potential of natural resources hidden in aquatic environments for the development of new drugs or bioactive substances with wide potential use. At present, an enormous scientific literature is available about the value of cnidarian products as potential therapeutic agents, in human nutrition, or for other applications. As such, these organisms can also be reasonably considered a resource. Taking into consideration these two main aspects, this book aims to collect the experiences and recent research data on cnidarians and review present knowledge on the subject.

Marine environments have long been places of exploration, subsistence, transport and trade, but it is only recently that marine tourism has extended beyond coastal resorts and beaches. Demand for marine wildlife experiences has grown considerably in recent decades but a corresponding increase in the conservation of these environments as well as adequate legislative and management responses aimed at sustainability has not yet followed. This book demonstrates that through scientific approaches to understanding and managing tourist interactions with marine wildlife, sustainable marine tourism can be achieved. Drawing from disciplines such as marine and conservation biology and behavioral ecology, the effects of human disturbance on marine wildlife as well as management approaches to moderate these impacts are explored. Social science perspectives are also used to understand consumer demand and the ethical and legislative problems that this demand creates. This comprehensive volume provides valuable insights for both researchers and practitioners in marine conservation and tourism.

Fish are one of the most important global food sources, supplying a significant share of the world's protein consumption. From stocks of wild Alaskan salmon and North Sea cod to entire fish communities with myriad species, fisheries require careful management to ensure that stocks remain productive, and mathematical models are essential tools for doing so. Fish Ecology, Evolution, and Exploitation is an authoritative introduction to the modern size- and trait-based approach to fish populations and communities. Ken Andersen covers the theoretical foundations, mathematical formulations, and real-world applications of this powerful new modeling method, which is grounded in the latest ecological theory and population biology. He begins with fundamental assumptions on the level of individuals and goes on to cover population demography and fisheries impact assessments. He shows how size- and trait-based models shed new light on familiar fisheries concepts such as maximum sustainable yield and fisheries selectivity-insights that classic age-based theory can't provide-and develops novel evolutionary impacts of fishing. Andersen extends the theory to entire fish communities and uses it to support the ecosystem approach to fisheries management, and forges critical links between trait-based methods and evolutionary ecology. Accessible to ecologists with a basic quantitative background, this incisive book unifies the thinking in ecology and fisheries science and is an indispensable reference for anyone seeking to apply size- and trait-based models to fish demography, fisheries impact assessments, and fish evolutionary ecology.

Explore the wonders of the underwater world and develop theoretical and practical marine science skills. Following extensive classroom research, this workbook has been revised by experienced teachers and examiners. The first section of the workbook includes exercises and exam-style questions for each topic to enable students to consolidate and assess their learning and apply their knowledge to novel situations. The second section includes 27 practical activities to develop students' investigative skills. Support notes and sample data are provided in the teacher's resource. Written in accessible language for the international learner this book helps students build confidence and develop essential skills.

The hadal zone represents one of the last great frontiers in marine science, accounting for 45% of the total ocean depth range. Despite very little research effort since the 1950s, the last ten years has seen a renaissance in hadal exploration, almost certainly as a result of technological advances that have made this otherwise largely inaccessible frontier, a viable subject for research. Providing an overview of the geology involved in trench formation, the hydrography and food supply, this book details all that is currently known about organisms at hadal depths and linkages to the better known abyssal and bathyal depths. New insights on how, where and what really survives and thrives in the deepest biozone are provided, allowing this region to be considered when dealing with sustainability and conservation issues in the marine environment.

Growing human populations and higher demands for water impose increasing impacts and stresses upon freshwater biodiversity. Their combined effects have made these animals more endangered than their terrestrial and marine counterparts. Overuse and contamination of water, overexploitation and overfishing, introduction of alien species, and alteration of natural flow regimes have led to a 'great thinning' and declines in abundance of freshwater animals, a 'great shrinking' in body size with reductions in large species, and a 'great mixing' whereby the spread of introduced species has tended to homogenize previously dissimilar communities in different parts of the world. Climate change and warming temperatures will alter global water availability, and exacerbate the other threat factors. What conservation action is needed to halt or reverse these trends, and preserve freshwater biodiversity in a rapidly changing world? This book offers the tools and approaches that can be deployed to help conserve freshwater biodiversity.

This is a book that has been divided into 9 chapters, including information on the recovery of highly valuable compounds for microalgae. The authors of this volume discuss seaweed as a renewable and globally available feedstock with potential applications in the food and feed industries, as well as the agricultural, chemical, or pharmaceutical fields. The chapters include discussions on a wide range of topics including an overview of seaweed by-products, Algae and microalgae biorefineries, the potential use of seaweed by-products in various products and materials, colour stability, and pigment contents of powdered laver (Pyropia yezoensis). The text also includes the interactions of the algae Sargassum muticum with metals as a starting point for the valorisation of invasive seaweed species, as well as new insights into the nutrition and functionality of seaweed. Microalgae biomass as an ingredient to design added value in food products, as well as seaweed biomass for bioremediation or Ethanol creation are additional topics.

A biomarker is a biochemical, cellular, physiological or behavioral variation that can be measured in tissue or body fluid samples or at the level of whole organisms that provides evidence of exposure to and/or effects of one or more chemical pollutants or radiations. Based on the facts related to the existence of contaminant stressors, an understanding of chemical modes of toxicity can be incorporated with diagnostic markers of aquatic animal physiology to help understand the health status of aquatic organisms in the field. New approaches in functional genomics and bioinformatics can help discriminate individual chemicals, or groups of chemicals among complex mixtures that may contribute to adverse biological effects. By using these recent methodologies, it could be useful to shed light on the molecular evolution of the biomarkers, and which role and functionality can be better understood based on exploring the relative evolution pathways in several aquatic organisms. PhD students and scientists with interests on physiology, ecotoxicology, biochemistry, molecular biology, molecular evolution and aquatic science disciplines will find this book very useful, based on the concepts and the relative biomarkers study cases, analyzed from the evolutionary point of view.