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Sea and Shore Life of Britain and North-west Europe, by Ray Gibson, Benedict Hextall and Alex Rogers
Sea and Shore Life of Britain and North-west Europe, by Ray Gibson, Benedict Hextall and Alex Rogers
This book breaks new ground in terms of identification guides to UK marine life, with its photographic coverage of a huge range of species - more than 500 in all.
This range includes seaweeds, all the familiar animal groupings such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs, starfish and sea anemones; and also less-familiar groups such as the bryozoans and non-segmented worms.
Previous books that have described such a large range of species have been based on paintings or line drawings, while those based on photography have been more selective, or have restricted themselves to the more common creatures.
The book's layout is well thought through: the section on each species includes a colour photograph (with an accompanying small line drawing in most cases), a list of key identification features, a map showing its distribution across northern Europe and descriptive text on its appearance, habitat and ecology, plus a useful mention of similar species with which it could be confused.
There are typically three species to each double-page spread. The book includes so much information that the photographs have to be quite small, but for the most part they are admirably clear, and the line drawings also aid identification.
Other nice touches are the introductory text on subjects such as tidal zones and habitat types, and a pictorial guide to the book's contents inside the front cover.
This is a valuable guide for divers and those who love to explore the shore, at a very reasonable price. The fact that there are further species not covered even by this excellent book is a testament to the often under-estimated richness of our seas.
Paul Naylor
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Sea and Shore Life of Britain and North-west Europe, by Ray Gibson, Benedict Hextall and Alex Rogers (Oxford University Press, 01865 556767). Softback, 436pp, £15.95
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