Inshore Fishes of Britain and Ireland

Book excerpt: A beautifully illustrated photographic identification guide to the common marine fish found around Britain and Ireland—ideal for divers, snorkellers, and natural history enthusiasts Fish are a colourful and important part of inshore marine life, much admired by divers and snorkellers. But it can be difficult to accurately identify and record these quick-moving animals underwater. This authoritative, beautifully illustrated photographic guide offers a practical, easy-to-use approach for identifying the fish species commonly seen in the waters around Britain and Ireland, as well as a few vagrant and interesting rare species. The book’s concise text explains how fish can be identified underwater, and is accompanied by numerous photographs of each species in its natural environment and diagrams illustrating key features. The book also clearly indicates the cases when underwater species identification is more difficult. Published in association with the UK’s Marine Conservation Society, the book makes an invaluable addition to the series of marine photographic titles of Seasearch, a species recording project for volunteer sports divers. Features individual descriptions of more than 150 species, with information on size, depth range, habitat and distribution in the Seasearch guide icon format Illustrates every species in its natural underwater environment Emphasises key identification features and possible confusion species Includes a “confidence guide” distinguishing between easily recognisable species and those requiring closer examination Features longer sections highlighting interesting species, behaviours and other topics Provides information on protected species, taxonomy, shifting distributions and conservation status