A number of major advances in our understanding of how physiological processes, and related behaviour patterns, are controlled and integrated in fish are presented in this book. Such information is not merely of academic interest since it is also fundamental to the scientific basis of fish farming and fisheries. The contributors are acknowledged experts from Europe and North America. The major themes covered are the autonomic and central nervous systems, the control of digestion, respiration and circulation, kidney function, endocrinology, and control of metabolism. Particular attention is given to reproduction in chapters on trout and teleost reproduction. Each key chapter contains much up-to-date material which will interest specialist and general readers alike.

Among the fishes. a remarkably wide range of biological adaptations to diverse habitats has evolved. As well as living in the conventional habitats of lakes. ponds, rivers, rock pools and the open sea, fish have solved the problems of life in deserts. in the deep sea. in the cold antarctic. and in warm waters of high alkalinity or of low oxygen. Along with these adaptations, we find the most impressive specialisations of morphology, physiology and behaviour. For example we can marvel at the high-speed swimming of the marlins. sailfish and warm-blooded tunas, air-breathing in catfish and lungfish. parental care in the mouth-brooding cichlids and viviparity in many sharks and toothcarps. Moreover, fish are of considerable importance to the survival of the human species in the form of nutritious. delicious and diverse food. Rational exploi management of our global stocks of fishes must rely upon a detailed tation and and precise insight of their biology. The Chapman ., . Hall Fish and Fisheries series aims to present timely volumes reviewing important aspects of fish biology. Most volumes will be of interest to research workers in biology. zoology. ecology and physiology but an additional aim is for the books to be accessible to a wide spectrum of non-specialist readers ranging from undergraduates and postgraduates to those with an interest in industrial and commercial aspects of IIsh and t1sheries."