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Deep Sea Fishes and Creatures   -- New Books

N-791 Creatures of the Deep In search of the sea's "monsters" and the world they live in  by Erich Hoyt October 2001, 160 pages, 9" x 11" , full color throughout, color map of the ocean floor, index, further reading, hardcover with dust jacket $40.00

Description

Award-winning nature and science writer Erich Hoyt tells the riveting story of the discovery of the deep ocean. Weaving together details from the latest scientific research about sharks, giant squid, dragonfish and the huge tube worms, clams and tiny microbes of the deep-sea vents, Hoyt embarks on a magical journey to the bottom of the sea, which is inhabited not by vicious monsters but by diverse species of pale starfish and mud-eating sea cucumbers. Roaming across the abyssal plains and descending deep-sea trenches, he presents as much about the character and charisma of these and other so-called monsters as about the extraordinary world in which they live.

The deep sea is not one place but many, and the animals living in each of these marine habitats have developed fascinating and vital ecological relationships with one another. Hoyt unravels the complex predator-prey relationships, from "killer" copepods to battles among giant squid and sperm whales, presenting compelling portraits of animals that are superbly adapted denizens of a dark high-pressure world. There are life-forms, independent of sunlight and photosynthesis, that flourish around the hot, sulfurous deep-sea vents in the magnificent rift valley of the midocean ridge, the world's longest mountain range. Surviving in conditions that appear to be close to the very soup of primordial Earth, these microbes have become the basis for the latest research into the Earth's origins. Fully illustrated with fantastic underwater imagery, Creatures of the Deep will help you enjoy and appreciate the findings and the importance of deep-sea work in the coming decades. The 21st century may well be the era of deep-ocean discovery.  

About the author:

Erich Hoyt has spent much of his life on, beneath or near the sea, working with whales and dolphins and marine conservation. The acclaimed author of Orca: The Whale Called Killer, Meeting the Whales, Riding With the Dolphins, The Earth Dwellers and Insect Lives, Hoyt lives in Scotland.
wpe16.jpg (1551 bytes) N-109 The Deep Sea by Joseph Wallace Text tells the story of ocean creatures and deep water inhabitants, over 100 photos, hardback, 1987, 143 pages. $19.95
N-480 Deep Sea Fish By Randall and Farrell 1997, hardback, 388 pages $110.95

Contents: Contributors. Preface. What Is the Deep-Sea? Systematics of Deep Sea Fishes: Introduction. A Classification of Living Fishes Occurring Near or Below about 500 to 600 M with an Annotated List of Deep Sea Fish. References. Distribution and Population Ecology. Feeding at Depth.Buoyancy at Depth: Introduction. The Problem of Buoyancy. Swimbladder Function. Lipid Accumulation. Watery Tissues. Hydrodynamic Lift. Conclusions. References. Biochemistry at Depth: Introduction. Effects of Pressure on Biochemical Systems: Protein Interactions and Enzyme Kinetics. Tolerance Adaptions: Maintenance of Biochemical Function in the Deep Sea. Capacity Adaptation: Biochemical Correlates of Organismal Metabolism. Future Directions: Phylogenetic and Molecular Approaches. References. Pressure Effects on Shallow Water Fish: Introduction. Fish as a Model. Methods. Effects of Short-Term Pressure Exposure. Acclimation of Fish to Hydrostatic Pressure. Comparison of Shallow Water Fish (SWF) and Deep Water Fish (DWF). Conclusion. References.Sensory Physiology: Introduction. Olfaction/Chemoreception. Vision. Touch. Octavolateralis Systems. General Comments. References. Laboratory and in Situ. Methods for Studying Deep Sea Fishes: Introduction. Laboratory Studies. In Situ Studies. Future Directions. References. Index.