This and the companion volume describe and illustrate more than 2000 species, from selected protozoans to fishes, found in the coastal waters of the British Isles and north-western Europe. They cover all benthic habitats, from the intertidal zone to approximately 30 metres depth, and also include representatives of estuarine and supralittoral faunas. Each major animal group is briefly introduced, with notes on the morphology, biology, and ecology of representative species, together with suitable techniques for their collection and study. Short bibliographies list the most important specialist literature for each group. Identification is facilitated by dichotomous keys, first to families, and then to genera or species. Short diagnostic accounts are given for each family and higher taxon; descriptions of all species treated are followed by notes on their ecological and geographical distribution. All species are illustrated by line drawings, with related species grouped together to facilitate comparisons. The two volumes comprise the most comprehensive single account of the marine fauna of British and adjacent waters ever produced. It is intended as a bench work for both professional and amateur marine biologist, as well as for undergraduate and postgraduate students. It is essentially a practical work; taxonomic and synonmic detail is deliberately kept to a minimum, with emphasis given to identification procedures.

Although Herman Melville's Moby-Dick is beloved as one of the most profound and enduring works of American fiction, we rarely consider it a work of nature writing--or even a novel of the sea. Yet Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Dillard avers Moby-Dick is the "best book ever written about nature," and nearly the entirety of the story is set on the waves, with scarcely a whiff of land. In fact, Ishmael's sea yarn is in conversation with the nature writing of Emerson and Thoreau, and Melville himself did far more than live for a year in a cabin beside a pond. He set sail: to the far remote Pacific Ocean, spending more than three years at sea before writing his masterpiece in 1851. A revelation for Moby-Dick devotees and neophytes alike, Ahab's Rolling Sea is a chronological journey through the natural history of Melville's novel. From white whales to whale intelligence, giant squids, barnacles, albatross, and sharks, Richard J. King examines what Melville knew from his own experiences and the sources available to a reader in the mid-1800s, exploring how and why Melville might have twisted what was known to serve his fiction. King then climbs to the crow's nest, setting Melville in the context of the American perception of the ocean in 1851--at the very start of the Industrial Revolution and just before the publication of On the Origin of Species. King compares Ahab's and Ishmael's worldviews to how we see the ocean today: an expanse still immortal and sublime, but also in crisis. And although the concept of stewardship of the sea would have been entirely foreign, if not absurd, to Melville, King argues that Melville's narrator Ishmael reveals his own tendencies toward what we would now call environmentalism. Featuring a coffer of illustrations and an array of interviews with contemporary scientists, fishers, and whale watch operators, Ahab's Rolling Sea offers new insight not only into a cherished masterwork and its author but also into our evolving relationship with the briny deep--from whale hunters to climate refugees.

On dry land, most organisms are confined to the surface, or at most to altitudes of a hundred meters - the height of the tallest trees. In the oceans, though, living space has both vertical and horizontal dimensions: with an average depth of 3,800 meters, the oceans offer 99 percent of the space on Earth where life can develop. And the deep sea, which has been immersed in total darkness since the dawn of time, occupies 85 percent of ocean space, forming the planet's largest habitat. Yet, these depths abound with mystery. The deep sea is mostly uncharted - only about 5 percent of the seafloor has been mapped with any reasonable degree of detail - and we know very little about the creatures that call it home. Current estimates about the number of species yet to be found vary between ten and thirty million. The deep sea no longer has anything to prove; it is without doubt Earth's largest reservoir of life. Combining the latest scientific discoveries with astonishing color imagery, "The Deep" takes readers on a voyage into the darkest realms of the ocean. Revealing nature's oddest and most mesmerizing creatures in crystalline detail, "The Deep" features more than two hundred color photographs of terrifying sea monsters, living fossils, and ethereal bioluminescent creatures, some photographed here for the very first time. Accompanying these breathtaking photographs are contributions from some of the world's most respected researchers that examine the biology of deep-sea organisms, the ecology of deep-sea habitats, and the history of deep-sea exploration. An unforgettable visual and scientific tour of the teeming abyss, "The Deep" celebrates the incredible diversity of life on Earth and will captivate anyone intrigued by the unseen - and unimaginable - creatures of the deep sea.

Discover over 500 species of sea shell from around the world with this pocket visual guide! This comprehensive handbook combines authoritative text and crystal-clear photography, bringing to light the planet's most spectacular shells. Packed with more than 600 full-color photographs, this handy reference book cuts through the complexities of identification, helping you to recognise more than 500 species of sea shell. Learn about the distinguishing characteristics of different shell species, where they came from, and how they came to look the way they do. For shell collecting beginners and conchology enthusiasts alike, this concise and portable guide will turn your next beach walk into an eye-opening journey of discovery! Handbook of Shells is filled with all you need to know about shell collecting and identification! Inside you'll find: -Jargon-free profiles of each shell, supported by stunning photographs -A shell identification key of every major group, making recognition easier than ever -Practical instructions explaining how to start, clean, identify and display a shell collection -Distribution maps illustrating the geographical range of each species At-a-glance key facts to impress your friends! Practical oceanology for all ages! Have you ever wondered how such delicate shells are churned out of the world's raging oceans? Now you can not only learn about our planet's most stunning sea shells, but also collect your own! Handbook of Shells is expertly written and authenticated by the Smithsonian Institution, providing the most up to date scientific information on shell classification. The perfect gift for a budding marine biologist, or anyone wanting to try their hand at beachcombing, this DK book is the clearest and sharpest sea shell guide out there! Even more handbooks to get you out into nature! The DK Handbook series is an incredible collection of titles that fascinate curious minds. Learn how rocks are formed and how to recognize them with the Handbook of Rocks and Minerals, or enter the fascinating world of astronomy with the Handbook of Stars and Planets.

How did the elephant seal survive being driven to the brink of extinction in the nineteenth century? What variables determine the lifetime reproductive success of individual seals? How have elephant seals adapted to tolerate remarkable physiological extremes of nutrition, temperature, asphyxia, and pressure? Answering these questions and many more, this book is the result of the author's 50-year study of elephant seals. The chapters cover a broad range of topics including diving, feeding, migration and reproductive behavior, yielding fundamental information on general biological principles, the operation of natural selection, the evolution of social behavior, the formation of vocal dialects, colony development, and population changes over time. The book will be a valuable resource for graduate students and researchers of marine mammal behavior and reproductive life history as well as for amateur naturalists interested in these fascinating animals.

Explore the miracles of the microscopic world. Find out all about the unique and beautiful kingdoms of life at a microscopic scale and how every organism meets the challenges of survival no matter its size. The perfect book for people who enjoy photography, nature, and biology. Inside the pages of this exciting nature book, you'll find: - Microscopic life-forms (often neglected), and their larger life-forms in extreme close-ups, revealing details such as nerve cells and hair follicles - Artworks support the beautiful images, providing a deeper insight into structure and function and building a picture of how living organisms work at a microscopic level - Comprehensive coverage of the natural world, including all the main groups of living things - Explores overlooked groups that have a huge role in the natural world: insects, which make up 80 percent of the world's animal species; and bacteria - of which there are more in a human mouth than there are people in the world - The book is organised according to the main functions of life: movement, reproduction, energy and feeding, sensing the surroundings, defence, etc. - Foreword for the book written by Chris Packham Explore the inhabitants of an invisible world in incredible detail with this book which contains macro photography and spectacular microscope imagery. You'll have so much information about the hidden world of intricate structures beyond the naked eye. From the tiniest spiders and insects to even microscopic creatures such as bacteria and viruses, this book contains it all! See the beauty of a pollen grain, a butterfly egg, the spore of a fungus, and a human's nerve cell in extreme close up. The amazing imagery in Micro Life contains focus-stacked macro photographs and micrographs (microscope images), including scanning electron micrographs. Illustrations in this book explain the science - from the workings of an insect's eye to how a plant "breathes" through its leaves. Micro Life is an unexpectedly breathtaking look at the natural world. Find out how life works and how organisms solve the fundamental problems of movement, reproduction, energy, communication, and defence. Suitable for all the family, this stunning book makes a wonderful gift for those interested in photography, nature or biology.

What lies beneath the surface of the ocean has mystified humankind for millennia. We have explored more of the surface of the Moon than we have of the deep sea. From vampire squid to giant spider crabs, and from hydrothermal vents to bioluminescence, its watery depths are both fascinating and terrifying. Deep Water explores, through spectacular images and expert text, how this unique habitat came into being, what lives there and why, how it has evolved and what the future will bring for this dark and mysterious environment.

This excellent second edition of Fisheries Biology, Assessment and Management, has been fully updated and expanded, providing a book which is an essential purchase for students and scientists studying, working or researching in fisheries and aquatic sciences. In the same way that excessive hunting on land has threatened terrestrial species, excessive fishing in the sea has reduced stocks of marine species to dangerously low levels. In addition, the ecosystems that support coastal marine species are threatened by habitat destruction, development and pollution. Open access policies and subsidised fishing are placing seafood in danger of becoming a scarce and very expensive commodity for which there is an insatiable demand. Positive trends include actions being taken to decrease the incidental catches of non-target species, consumer preferences for seafood from sustainable fisheries, and the establishment of no-take areas that provide refuges for marine species. But there is an urgent need to do more. Because there is an increasing recognition of the need to manage ecosystems as well as fish stocks, this second edition of this bestselling text book includes an additional chapter on marine ecology. Chapters on parameter estimation and stock assessment now include step-by-step instructions on building computer spreadsheet models, including simulations with random variations that realistically emulate the vagaries of nature. Sections on ecosystem management, co-management, community-based management and marine protected areas have been expanded to match the increased interest in these areas. Containing many worked examples, computer programs and numerous high quality illustrations, Fisheries Biology, Assessment and Management, second edition, is a comprehensive and essential text for students worldwide studying fisheries, fish biology, aquatic and biological sciences. As well as serving as a core text for students, the book is a superb reference for fisheries and aquatic researchers, scientists and managers across the globe, in both temperate and tropical regions. Libraries in all universities where fish biology, fisheries, aquatic sciences and biological sciences are studied and taught will need copies of this most useful new edition on their shelves. Supplementary material is available at: www.blackwellpublishing.com/king

Echinoderms elaborate a calcite skeleton composed of numerous plates with a distinct microstructure (stereom) that can be modelled into different shapes thanks to the use of a transient amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) precursor phase and the incorporation of an intraorganic matrix during biomineralization. A variety of different types of stereom microarchitecture have been distinguished, each of them optimized for a specific function. For instance, a regular, galleried stereom typically houses collagenous ligaments, whereas an irregular, fine labyrinthic stereom commonly bears muscles. Epithelial tissues, in turn, are usually associated with coarse and dense stereom microfabrics. Stereom can be preserved in fossil echinoderms and a wide array of investigating methods are available. As many case studies have shown, a great deal of important paleobiological and paleoecological information can be decoded by studying the stereom microstructure of extinct echinoderms.

Aquatic systems exhibit incredible diversity - from mountain streams to deep oceans, from lakes and ponds to the estuaries that link river and sea. Despite their distinct characters, however, these systems share common properties and, at the level of ecology, are not all that different after all. But how can this be? Ecology of Aquatic Systems brings together coverage of freshwater and marine systems to illustrate the principles and properties that unify aquatic systems. Using examples drawn from a wide geographical range, the book presents a broad survey of the field that acts as the ideal foundation for further study. Opening with a review of the different types of aquatic system and their interconnected nature, and the diversity of life within aquatic systems, the book goes on to explore the key types of aquatic habitat, emphasising the ecological themes that pervade each system. Written with students in the centre of the frame, Ecology of Aquatic Systems retains the succinct, lucid style for which the first edition was praised, and includes cross-references throughout, a substantial glossary, and extensive index, to help readers engage with, and fully understand, the material presented. With the global importance of aquatic systems becoming more apparent - and the need for effective management of these systems becoming increasingly clear - there has never been a more important time for students to fully grasp the fundamentals of aquatic systems. Ecology of Aquatic Systems is the ideal course companion to achieve this goal. Online Resource Centre: The Online Resource Centre features: For registered adopters of the text: - Figures from the book in electronic format, ready to download; - A testbank of multiple-choice questions, for use in formative or summative assessment For students: - Hyperlinks to literature articles cited in the text

Our oceans are becoming increasingly inhospitable to life--growing toxicity and rising temperatures coupled with overfishing have led many marine species to the brink of collapse. And yet there is one creature that is thriving in this seasick environment: the beautiful, dangerous, and now incredibly numerous jellyfish. As foremost jellyfish expert Lisa-ann Gershwin describes in "Stung , "the jellyfish population bloom is highly indicative of the tragic state of the world's ocean waters, while also revealing the incredible tenacity of these remarkable creatures. Recent documentaries about swarms of giant jellyfish invading Japanese fishing grounds and summertime headlines about armadas of stinging jellyfish in the Mediterranean and Chesapeake are only the beginning--jellyfish are truly taking over the oceans. Despite their often dazzling appearance, jellyfish are simple creatures with simple needs: namely, fewer predators and competitors, warmer waters to encourage rapid growth, and more places for their larvae to settle and grow. In general, oceans that are less favorable to fish are more favorable to jellyfish, and these are the very conditions that we are creating through mechanized trawling, habitat degradation, coastal construction, pollution, and climate change. Despite their role as harbingers of marine destruction, jellyfish are truly enthralling creatures in their own right, and in "Stung ," Gershwin tells stories of jellyfish both attractive and deadly while illuminating many interesting and unusual facts about their behaviors and environmental adaptations. She takes readers back to the Proterozoic era, when jellyfish were the top predator in the marine ecosystem--at a time when there were no fish, no mammals, and no turtles; and she explores the role jellies have as middlemen of destruction, moving swiftly into vulnerable ecosystems. The story of the jellyfish, as Gershwin makes clear, is also the story of the world's oceans, and "Stung "provides a unique and urgent look at their inseparable histories--and future.

The image most of us have of whalers includes harpoons and intentional trauma. Yet eating commercially caught seafood leads to whales' entanglement and slow death in rope and nets, and the global shipping routes that bring us readily available goods often lead to death by collision. We-all of us-are whalers, marine scientist and veterinarian Michael J. Moore contends. But we do not have to be. Drawing on over forty years of fieldwork with humpback, pilot, fin, and in particular, North Atlantic right whales-a species whose population has declined more than twenty percent since 2017-Moore takes us with him as he performs whale necropsies on animals stranded on beaches, in his independent research alongside whalers using explosive harpoons, and as he tracks injured whales to deliver sedatives. The whales' plight is a complex, confounding, and disturbing one. We learn of existing but poorly enforced conservation laws and of perennial (and often failed) efforts to balance the push for fisheries profit versus the protection of endangered species caught by accident. But despite these challenges, Moore's tale is an optimistic one. He shows us how technologies for rope-less fishing and the acoustic tracking of whale migrations make a dramatic difference. And he looks ahead with hope as our growing understanding of these extraordinary creatures fuels an ever-stronger drive for change.

Oceanographers and the Cold War is about patronage, politics, and the community of scientists. It is the first book to examine the study of the oceans during the Cold War era and explore the international focus of American oceanographers, taking into account the roles of the US Navy, US foreign policy, and scientists throughout the world. Jacob Darwin Hamblin demonstrates that to understand the history of American oceanography, one must consider its role in both conflict and cooperation with other nations. Paradoxically, American oceanography after World War II was enmeshed in the military-industrial complex while characterized by close international cooperation. The military dimension of marine science--with its involvement in submarine acoustics, fleet operations, and sea-launched nuclear missiles--coexisted with data exchange programs with the Soviet Union and global operations in seas without borders. From an uneasy cooperation with the Soviet bloc in the International Geophysical Year of 1957-58, to the NATO Science Committee in the late 1960s, which excluded the Soviet Union, to the US Marine Sciences Council, which served as an important national link between scientists and the government, Oceanographers and the Cold War reveals the military and foreign policy goals served by US government involvement in cooperative activities between scientists, such as joint cruises and expeditions. It demonstrates as well the extent to which oceanographers used international cooperation as a vehicle to pursue patronage from military, government, and commercial sponsors during the Cold War, as they sought support for their work by creating "disciples of marine science" wherever they could.

This book presents a comprehensive review of the most recent studies on the impact of contaminants on the marine environment. Conventional and new information, as well as the latest techniques, are presented, which can be applied to several types of marine organisms from bacteria and fungi to animals and algae. Specific topics discussed include the impact of different contaminants on different organisms as well as different approaches and their outcomes in terms of impact assessment. The integration of these techniques is also discussed in order to attain sentinel species and biomarkers to be applied for assessing ecological quality and impact assessment programs and studies.

This two-volume set explores the aspects of diversity of micro and macro algal forms, their traditional uses; their constituents which are of value for food, feed, specialty chemicals, bioactive compounds for several novel applications and bioenergy molecules. The industrial production systems, downstream processing, utilization of the biomass and the metabolites of importance for various applications are addressed. Innovations in production technologies, coupled with the biological activities of their novel metabolites and molecules, offer tremendous scope for the exploitation of these micro and macro algal forms through industrial production processes in a sustainable manner. These two volumes offer a treasure house of information to the students and researchers of plant sciences, biological sciences, agricultural sciences, foods and nutrition sciences, health sciences and environmental sciences. Their practical value will benefit professionals including agriculture and food experts, biotechnologists, ecologists, environmentalists, and biomass specialists. This set will also aid industries dealing with foods, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals , cosmecuticals health care products, and bioenergy.

"Conus" is the largest genus of animals in the sea, occurring throughout the world's tropical and subtropical oceans and contributing significantly to marine biodiversity. The shells of these marine mollusks are prized for their amazing variety and extraordinary beauty. The neurotoxic venoms they produce--injected by a hollow, harpoon-like tooth into prey animals that are then paralyzed and swallowed whole--have a range of pharmaceutical applications, from painkillers to antidepressants. This beautifully illustrated book identifies 53 valid species of the southeastern United States and the Caribbean, a region that supports a diverse but taxonomically challenging group of "Conus." Introductory chapters cover the evolution and phylogeny of the genus, and notes on methodology are provided. Detailed species accounts describe key identification features, taxonomy, distribution, ecology, toxicology, life history, and evolutionary relationships. The book includes more than 2,100 photos of shells on 109 splendid color plates; more than 100 additional photos, many depicting live animals in color; and 35 color distribution maps.Identifies 53 valid species--the first reassessment of western Atlantic "Conus" in more than seventy yearsFeatures more than 2,100 photos of shells on 109 color platesBlends the traditional shell-character approach to identification with cutting-edge shell and radular tooth morphometrics and molecular genetic analysesIncludes color images of live animals as well as color distribution maps

This open access book surveys the frontier of scientific river research and provides examples to guide management towards a sustainable future of riverine ecosystems. Principal structures and functions of the biogeosphere of rivers are explained; key threats are identified, and effective solutions for restoration and mitigation are provided. Rivers are among the most threatened ecosystems of the world. They increasingly suffer from pollution, water abstraction, river channelisation and damming. Fundamental knowledge of ecosystem structure and function is necessary to understand how human acitivities interfere with natural processes and which interventions are feasible to rectify this. Modern water legislation strives for sustainable water resource management and protection of important habitats and species. However, decision makers would benefit from more profound understanding of ecosystem degradation processes and of innovative methodologies and tools for efficient mitigation and restoration. The book provides best-practice examples of sustainable river management from on-site studies, European-wide analyses and case studies from other parts of the world. This book will be of interest to researchers in the field of aquatic ecology, river system functioning, conservation and restoration, to postgraduate students, to institutions involved in water management, and to water related industries.

This is the largest seaweed, giant kelp (Macrocystis) is the fastest growing and most prolific of all plants found on earth. Growing from the seafloor and extending along the ocean surface in lush canopies, giant kelp provides an extensive vertical habitat in a largely two-dimensional seascape. It is the foundation for one of the most species-rich, productive, and widely distributed ecological communities in the world. Schiel and Foster's scholarly review and synthesis take the reader from Darwin's early observations to contemporary research, providing a historical perspective for the modern understanding of giant kelp evolution, biogeography, biology, and physiology. The authors furnish a comprehensive discussion of kelp species and forest ecology worldwide, with considerations of human uses and abuses, management and conservation, and the current and likely future impacts of global change. This volume promises to be the definitive treatise and reference on giant kelp and its forests for many years, and it will appeal to marine scientists and others who want a better appreciation and understanding of these wondrous forests of the sea.

Marine pollution occurs today in varied forms--chemical, industrial, and agricultural-and the sources of pollution are endless. In recent history, we've seen oil spills, untreated sewage, eutrophication, invasive species, heavy metals, acidification, radioactive substances, marine litter, and overfishing, among other significant problems. Though marine pollution has long been a topic of concern, it has very recently exploded in environmental, economic, and political debate circles; scientists and non-scientists alike continue to be shocked and dismayed at the sheer diversity of water pollutants and the many ways they can come to harm our environment and our bodies.
In Marine Pollution: What Everyone Needs to Know, Judith Weis covers marine pollution from many different angles, each fascinating in its own right. Beginning with its sources and history, the book describes in detail each common pollutant, why exactly it is harmful, why it may draw controversy, and how we can prevent it from destroying our aquatic ecosystems. Weis discusses topics like what actually happened with the Exxon Valdez, and why Harmful Algal Blooms are a serious concern. Later chapters will discuss pollutants that are only now surfacing as major threats, such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and metal nanoparticles, and explain how these can begin in the water and progress up the food chain and emerge in human bodies. The book's final section will discuss the effects of climate change and acidification on marine pollution levels, and how we can reduce pollution at the local and global levels.

Marine environment can be affected by several pollutants such as the presence of elements and their chemical species, pharmaceuticals, nanoparticles and other emerging contaminants. Environmental monitoring can be assessed by genomics, proteomics (i.e. redox proteomics), chemical speciation analysis and metallomics, metabolomics as well as other advanced strategies. The present book is a useful methodological tool for researchers and specialists in the field of analytical chemistry, environmental sciences, biochemistry, genomics and toxicology. The book includes for the first time the methodological aspects and applications related to chemical speciation and -omics strategies applied to marine environment.

Marine biologist Micheline Jenner discovered humpback breeding grounds off the Kimberley coast, has swum through orange golfball-sized pygmy blue whale poo to uncover a feeding spot, and is one of very few people to witness a humpback whale giving birth.In The Secret Life of Whales she reveals the unknown world of these giants of the deep and shares insights from her work with humpback, blue and pygmy blue whales, taking us from Australia to Antarctica and beyond. Enlightening and eye-opening, The Secret Life of Whales reveals fascinating information about how whales live, tapping into Jenner's world-leading research and infectious enthusiasm for these magnificent creatures. Sales Points Micheline Jenner is the real deal in whale experts - a scientist with a passion for whales who has devoted twenty years to her research. Micheline's infectious enthusiasm for whales will delight readers and media alike. A full media campaign is planned. Micheline has a great story - she lives onboard the boat Whale Song with her husband and they have raised two children on the high seas The book is truly informative - it shares Micheline and Curt's world-leading research including uncovering humpback whale breeding grounds off the Kimberley coast.

A counterintuitive and compelling argument that existing laws already protect the entirety of our oceans-and a call to understand and enforce those protections. The world's oceans face multiple threats: the effects of climate change, pollution, overfishing, plastic waste, and more. Confronted with the immensity of these challenges and of the oceans themselves, we might wonder what more can be done to stop their decline and better protect the sea and marine life. Such widespread environmental threats call for a simple but significant shift in reasoning to bring about long-overdue, elemental change in the way we use ocean resources. In Future Sea, ocean advocate and marine-policy researcher Deborah Rowan Wright provides the tools for that shift. Questioning the underlying philosophy of established ocean conservation approaches, Rowan Wright lays out a radical alternative: a bold and far-reaching strategy of 100 percent ocean protection that would put an end to destructive industrial activities, better safeguard marine biodiversity, and enable ocean wildlife to return and thrive along coasts and in seas around the globe. Future Sea is essentially concerned with the solutions and not the problems. Rowan Wright shines a light on existing international laws intended to keep marine environments safe that could underpin this new strategy. She gathers inspiring stories of communities and countries using ocean resources wisely, as well as of successful conservation projects, to build up a cautiously optimistic picture of the future for our oceans-counteracting all-too-prevalent reports of doom and gloom. A passionate, sweeping, and personal account, Future Sea not only argues for systemic change in how we manage what we do in the sea but also describes steps that anyone, from children to political leaders (or indeed, any reader of the book), can take toward safeguarding the oceans and their extraordinary wildlife.

Touching This Leviathan asks how we might come to know the unknowable--in this case, whales, these animals so large yet so elusive, revealing just a sliver of back, a glimpse of a fluke, or, if you're lucky, a split-second breach before diving away. It's a pressing question, given how frequently whales are in the news: Japan just withdrew from the International Whaling Commission's ban on whaling; the Makah Tribe seeks to resume hunts; in 2019 there was a rash of dead gray whales along the west coast (some 200 of them); in 2018, an orca attracted international attention when she pushed her dead calf through the water 17 days before finally letting go. But other whale books sit in disciplinary silos: the history books, the science books, the literary books. There's no conversation between them, which is where Touching This Leviathan intervenes. Drawing upon biology, theology, local history, literary studies, environmental studies, and composition theory, Touching This Leviathan is necessarily interdisciplinary: literary nonfiction that gestures toward science and literary criticism as it invites readers into the belly of the whale.