Sharks and rays of Australia
Peter R. Last and John D. Stevens
Australia, CSIRO Publishing, 2009
640 pp, incl. 91 colour plates, ISBN-13: 9780674034112. €89, £75, $125
This monumental work is the second, revised edition of the successful faunal guide on sharks, rays and chimaeras of Australia. The first edition appeared in 1994, and the present one was released on 2 March 2009. The 2009 edition includes 322 species of sharks, rays and chimaeras occurring in the Australian waters. The 80 species left unnamed in the 1994 edition have been described since, mainly in three CSIRO Research Papers (no. 14, Descriptions of new dogfishes of the genus Squalus (Squaloidea: Squalidae) in 2007, no. 21, Descriptions of New Australian Skates (Batoidea: Rajoidei) and no. 22, Descriptions of New Australian Chondrichthyans, in 2008). A comparison of the two editions is provided in the Appendix: 107 new species names including the 80 unnamed ones of the 1994 edition and 27 new species discovered since 1994. Also, 40 species were re-identified or presented in new combinations.
The structure of the book
The introduction (pages 1–8) presents general information on chondrichthyan fishes, with emphasis on the Australian shark and ray fauna; it also includes information on the impact of sharks and rays on humans, and that of humans on sharks and rays. Chapter 2 (pages 9–11) explains ‘How to use this book’. Chapter 3 is an extensive glossary of the technical and scientific terminology used in the book, complete with plates illustrating shark, ray and chimaera terminologies, along with plates showing how to take the main mean morphometrical measurements. Chapter 4 is an illustrated ‘Key to Australasian families of sharks and rays’, with drawings detailing the diagnostic features when needed. Chapters 5–36 are the systematic accounts of the 32 families of sharks. Chapters 37–54 are the systematics accounts of the 18 families of rays. Chapters 55–57 treat the three families of chimaeras. An extensive bibliography includes 532 references. A checklist of Australian sharks, rays and chimaeras is given followed by an index of scientific names and one of common names. The 91 colour plates are presented at the end of the book.
Each chapter (systematic account) starts with general information on the family, followed by an illustrated key to species. For every species, the following information is given: Australian name, current scientific names, and alternative names; the field characters (what to look at, when at sea, to quickly identify the species), the distinctive characters (a description of the main features of the species); the colour pattern is treated separately as it is often what is looked at first. A colour painting (which is re-used in the plates at the end of the book), and when needed, some additional line drawings to show diagnostic characters (teeth, snout, mouth, etc.). A map illustrates the distribution. The maximum size is given and, when known, the size at different ontogenic stages (at birth, at sexual maturity). ‘Remarks’ provide useful comments on the taxonomic status, the biology and distribution, then main references related to the species are given. The ‘Fish Code’ is what is used to collect the fishery data by the Australian fishery services.
This work is almost flawless! The only mistake noted is the reversal of legends of drawings in plate 15: 19.3 should be Orectolobus ornatus and 19.6 Orectolobus halei. There is no doubt that this edition will be a best seller as was the first edition. It comes just at the right moment, to help the growing number of potential users (professional fishermen, anglers and shark lovers, fishery biologists and managers, marine biologists, ecologists and conservationists, etc.) who need to identify or to get basic information on this fauna. Besides being a reference book and an essential tool for many users, it is also a ‘beautiful book’ illustrated with numerous watercolours by the famous naturalist, zoologist and artist Roger Swainston. It will therefore please the afficionados of natural history paintings too. This is not a cheap book (approximately 89 Euros), but it is affordable, and be assured you'll get your money's worth. Meanwhile, another new species has been recently found in Australian waters! But don't wait until a third revised edition is published, just get this masterpiece of work and you'll have hours of wonder diving in it!
Bernard Séret, IRD
Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle
Département Systématique et Evolution
Paris, France
E-mail: [email protected]
© 2010 Bernard Séret
Appendix. List of species new or renamed in the 2009 edition compared to the 1994 edition.