The Physiology of Fishes continues to be a highly useful book series. Yes, I call it a book series since each of the four editions that have come out so far are not revisions of earlier editions, but largely completely new books with new authors of the chapters. One problem with this is that these books have drifted away from presenting a comprehensive summary of fish physiology, to become a selection of review articles. There is nothing wrong with publishing excellent reviews, but it becomes problematic when the editors in their preface still present this book as a textbook that can be used in courses. On the back of the book it is stated that it ‘provides comprehensive coverage of the most important aspects of the form and function of fishes’.
The first and second editions, published in 1993 and 1998, with David Evans as sole editor, were indeed complete textbooks covering all aspects of fish physiology, with few gaps. With the third edition (2006), gaps started to appear, such as the lack of a chapter on vision. In the current fourth edition, which is actually 150 pages shorter than the third edition, there are so many gaps in the treatment of fish physiology that it becomes problematic to use the book in a comprehensive course. At least it cannot be used as the single text for such a course. For example, there are no treatments of key topics like respiration and gas exchange, and related environmental issues such as hypoxia and hypercapnia. Those gaps are particularly unfortunate in light of the massive current interest in the effects of climate change and ocean acidification on fishes. Other important physiological functions that are not treated include biomechanics (swimming), endocrinology (except for a chapter on endocrine disruption) and reproductive physiology. Moreover, the only sensory systems covered are chemoreception and active electroreception. Vision, hearing and the more widespread passive electroreception are left out.
On the other hand, for those with an interest in particular aspects of fish physiology, the book presents some excellent reading. Thus, the book contains chapters on muscle plasticity, the cardiovascular system, membranes and metabolism, oxygen sensing, intestinal transport, acid-base regulation, thermal stress, social stress, nociception, chemoreception, cardiac regeneration, neuronal regeneration, and as mentioned, active electroreception and endocrine disruption. These all appear to be excellent summaries of important research fields and contain thorough reviews of the literature.
Thus, since the first two editions, this book has drifted away from covering fish physiology in a comprehensive way, and this last edition is clearly more of a collection of reviews than a textbook to be used at courses in fish physiology. So, unfortunately, we now seem to be back in the same situation as before the first edition of this book, in which David Evans pointed out in his preface that no suitable text existed for teaching a graduate course in fish physiology.