Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas

After many years of cruising and snorkeling at some of the best islands in the Western and Southern Caribbean, I was on the quest to find a good reef fish identification book. Hubby and I used a few fish ID cards, you know the plastic ones that you can carry around with you and at times squint really hard to see if there's any resemblance to the fish we had seen underwater. This book was a wonderful find and has a wealth of information. The book is divided into twelve (12) identification groups (e.g. disc/ovals, silvery, sloping bodies/tapered heads, small ovals, heavy bodies/large lips, odd shaped swimmers, etc). There are many pictures provided and I enjoy seeing the differences between the juveniles or initial stage and the adult or terminal phase. Some of the plain looking juveniles turn into beautiful and colorful adults such as the Parrotfish. The book also points out distinctive markings on the fish (line drawings) along with color pictures. Within each identification group, there are explanations along with descriptions of distinctive features, habitat and behavior, and reactions to divers. Again, a lot of information in this book and well worth the price. The book is quite heavy to carry around, but I can see taking this with us and leaving it in our cabin/room and use as a reference at the end of our daily snorkel adventures. There is a lighter version of this book that I also purchased called the Snorkeling Guide to Marine Life (red cover) and about 80 pages in length. This one covers many of the common underwater marine life we've seen while snorkeling. I can see carrying this lighter version in my snorkel bag. I highly recommend this Reef Fish book with over 500+ pages of beautiful pictures and surprisingly enought detail information to help identify the many underwater marine life. Enjoy!

Love my fish book!. Filled with nice quality pics with lots of useful info for identifying.

This book is a fantastic find to have on your shelf, especially if you like to snorkel or dive! It’s very detailed and offers a lot of knowledge regarding habitat, fish behavior, and especially fish, identification! I absolutely love the whole series, and I use them frequently! Has fantastic pictures and shows you the difference between male and female, or juvenile and adult especially if there are color changes.

This is an excellent, well-organized, beautifully photographed compendium of fishes often seen in the Caribbean. Easy to use and physically durable. Highly recommended!

Awesome book for novice snorkeler and diver alike. This is organized by fish body type to make it easier to distinguish similar fish from one another. Have used this book in Grand Cayman and Aruba on several occasions---helping me to identify the many fish seen in the shallow Caribbean waters while snorkeling. The descriptions also include behavior (schooling, hiding) and levels of approachability---things that help you to identify fish more precisely. The color photography is well done, in my opinion and is all relatively new (just a few of the obviously "older" photos of those ultra rare fish--the ones no one has seen in decades.). I have the prior edition, this new edition and have purchased this edition to give as a gift. It is a relatively dense/heavy book for its' size---but it is the one fish book you need, so I feel it is worth the weight in your suitcase. If they had a companion "fish chart" to take in the water---it would be perfect.

This book was developed for the active scuba diver and snorkeler. Everything is right about this visual guide to the diversity of reef fish of the tropical Western Atlantic: the lay-out, the high-quality paper, the beautiful pictures, the concise but very clear info. The Paul Humman's Reef ID series grew to become a standard in the genre and deserves praise. If you are a diver and have Florida/Caribbean/Bahamas (and even Brazil!) in your plans and if your goal is to know pretty much every fish you can encounter on a reef, buy this book. In the process, you can also learn a fair deal of ichtiology and the relationship among fishes (e.g. the goatfish is a relative of the mullet, the hogfish is a a kind of wrasse, guitarfish is a ray,etc). Another great book from the same publisher is "Reef Fish behavior", which can take you to the next level - once again, it is a book with the scuba diver in mind, but it can be appreciated by every nature lover.

I have delayed reviewing this book as it requires me to commit to "finishing" it. One never finishes this book. It is a truly fabulous, informative, and beautifully presented reference book that accompanies me to the Caribbean time after time on my dive trips. In group dive trips, I am forever wrestling it back from my fellow divers--so much so that I had to give the dive couple we usually dive with a copy of their own. Humann not only helps you identify the various Caribbean creatures in the usual way of pointing out distinguishing features and identifying marks, he also helps you understand the relationship between seemingly very different fish (like how a pretty little Fairy Basslet is related to those big, impressive Bass). And, of course, I can't give enough praise to Ned Deloach's photography--truly amazing work. I had the privilege a few years ago of meeting Mr. Deloach and his talented videographer wife at a lecture at Scripps Institute of Oceanography in San Diego and felt like it was meeting the true giants in a very specialized field--quite an honor. For scuba divers, snorkelers, or just lovers of sea creatures, this is a must have.

I have every one of Ned's and Paul's books on my shelf and I find them absolutely invaluable. I take whichever one is applicable to the area I'm diving with me on trips and pour over them to identify whatever I see. There's a reason you see these on every dive boat and in every dive shop and resort you go to...it's because they are the best.

Libro ideal para la identificación de peces con base a imágenes e información básica. si te gustan los peces no debe faltar en tu colección

Très bon guide, bien détaillé et organisé pour ceux qui lise l'anglais. Je le recommande si vous voulez faire de l'identification. Jetez un oeil au reste de la collection des ces ouvrages !

I love this book!! Waterproof, I'm a scuba diver and I'm not scared of bringing the book on the boat. Great informations about the underwater world

A really well presented and layed out reference book. The pictures are so bright and vibrant just like the fish !

Good quality photos, lots of information about the fishes. Excellent book