Acoustic Communication in Insects and Anurans.

Common Problems and Diverse

Solutions
Author(s) :Peter M. Narins
Source: Copeia, 2003(3):671-672. 2003.
Published By: The American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1643/OT-03-039
URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1643/OT-03-039

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 BOOK REVIEWS
Copeia, 2003(3), pp. 671–683
q 2003 by the American Society of enumerating examples of interesting acoustic
Ichthyologists and Herpetologists behaviors. The authors summarize, synthesize
and suggest future directions for the electro-
physiological and neuroanatomical studies that
ACOUSTIC COMMUNICATION IN INSECTS have explored the mechanisms underlying the
AND ANURANS. COMMON PROBLEMS AND natural acoustic behavior of their favorite ani-
DIVERSE SOLUTIONS. H. Carl Gerhardt and mals. Moreover, the work is firmly couched in
Franz Huber. 2002. University of Chicago Press, an evolutionary framework, an emphasis of
Chicago, Illinois. ISBN 0-226-28832-3 (cloth), 0- both authors throughout their own long and
226-28833-1 (paper). 531 p. $100.00 (cloth), fruitful research careers.
$35.00 (paper).—Shortly after the first edition For example, the intriguing set of neural
of William Keeton’s Biological Science appeared mechanisms underlying the seemingly impossi-
in 1967, it became the best selling textbook in ble task of sound localization in small insects
the United States. One of the principal reasons and anuran amphibians has received a great
for its wide appeal was Keeton’s lucid writing deal of recent attention. The small interaural
style: one could open the book to any page at distances of most insects and anurans set an up-
random, begin reading anywhere, and the text per limit on the magnitude of binaural differ-
was clear, understandable, and interesting. Ger- ences in both time of arrival of short sounds
hardt and Huber’s Acoustic Communication in In- and in the phase of continuous signals. The au-
sects and Anurans has a similar appeal. In a high- thors describe the experimental evidence that
ly readable monograph, the authors have suc- the neural latency (time between the onset of
ceeded in producing a comprehensive, modern the sound and spike firing) may serve as a cue
synthesis of a great deal of disparate informa- aiding localization in both sets of animals. How
tion about these two diverse taxa. would this work? Since neural latency is inverse-
As the book’s subtitle suggests, the acoustic ly related to sound intensity, interaural intensity
signals of insects and the anuran amphibians differences can result in behaviorally useful
(frogs and toads) face ‘‘common problems and neural time differences. Studies in the locust re-
diverse solutions.’’ The recurring theme vealed that the timing of spike firing in single
throughout the book concerns the elucidation receptor fibers changes as much as 6 msec when
of these problems and the complex and often the sound source is moved around the animal
parallel solutions that have evolved among (Mörchen et al., 1978). This latency exceeds the
members of these two groups. One of my favor- maximum time of arrival difference between
ite examples concerns the behaviors exhibited the two ears by a factor of 100 to 1000. Thus,
by calling males in both groups to increase the the position of the sound source in space may
communication range of their signals. Males of potentially be (partially) encoded by spike la-
one species of mole cricket (Scapteriscus acletus) tency. In the northern leopard frog (Rana pi-
construct subterranean burrows with acoustic piens), a similar situation exists in that small in-
hornlike properties. These animals appear to tensity changes in binaurally presented acoustic
move back and forth in their burrows while pro- stimuli may result in relatively large firing laten-
ducing bursts of sound, suggesting that the in- cy shifts in primary auditory neurons (Feng,
sect is searching for a location at which the bur- 1982). In their suggestions for future research,
row is tuned to the resonant frequency of its the authors point out that the biophysical mech-
wings (Bennet-Clark, 1987). Matching of tunnel anisms of directional hearing in anurans are still
resonances with carrier frequencies also occurs poorly understood. It seems that the role of
in some species of anurans that call from bur- spike latency in sound localization has been un-
rows (Bailey and Roberts, 1991; Penna and So- derappreciated and might well be explored in
lı́s, 1996). Lardner (2002) recently described a the future.
parallel solution to that of the mole cricket in This book has many outstanding features. It
a Bornean microhylid frog in the genus Meta- boasts a clear writing style; despite being written
phrynella that calls from treeholes. Apparently by two authors, the insect and frog sections
males actively adjust their call frequencies to blend seamlessly. It is timely, comprehensive,
match the resonant properties of the treehole and authoritative. The 1250 references alone
to maximize their acoustic output. would make this book a must-have for students
Gerhardt and Huber go far beyond merely of evolutionary biology, neuroethology, animal
672 COPEIA, 2003, NO. 3

behavior, herpetology, and entomology. These PROJECT PIABA. Ning Labbish Chao, Paulo
include a number of somewhat obscure but im- Petry, Gregory Prang, Leonard Sonneschien,
portant references heretofore relatively un- and Michael Tlusty (eds.). 2001. Editoria de
known to the non-German-speaking world, es- Universidade do Amazonas, Manaus, Brazil.
pecially on the mechanisms of insect hearing, ISBN 85-7401-083-9. 310 p. $40.00 (soft-
including several Ph.D. dissertations. It gener- bound).—The cardinal tetra, Paracheirodon ax-
ally is carefully edited. Like many first editions, elrodi, was largely responsible for rejuvenation of
the odd typographical or factual error inevitably the aquarium industry in the United States
infiltrates the otherwise uninfected text, but upon its entrance onto the market in the late
these are few and do not detract from the flow 1950s. This species is exported from the middle
of the ideas. If I were to make one suggestion Rio Negro of Brazil in huge numbers, compris-
for the second edition, it would be to improve ing up to 80% of 20 million total fishes per year,
the general quality of the illustrations. For ex- and supports a US$3 million local annual econ-
ample, the photographs (e.g., Fig. 11.2), scan- omy (65% of the total) involving roughly 80%
ning electron micrographs (e.g., Fig. 5.6) and of the local population of 16,000 in the vicinity
the sound spectrograms and oscillograms (e.g., of Barcelos. Although a minute fraction of the
Figs. 9.6 and 9.7) suffer from poor resolution. total commercial fishery in the Amazon basin
Despite these minor criticisms, I very much en- (Bayley and Petrere, 1989), the ornamental fish-
joyed reading the book, learned quite a bit from ery nevertheless represents the principal subsis-
it, and emerged in awe of the authors’ scholar- tence activity in the Barcelos region, following
ship and remarkable synthesis of the commu- the decline in extractive economies for latex
nication neuroethology of these two disparate and palm fibers in the 1970s. This volume in-
yet acoustically related taxa. It should serve as cludes the majority of the papers and presen-
the definitive text in this area for the foresee- tations offered at a workshop on Amazon River
able future and will, with any luck, spawn other biodiversity held at the St. Louis Children’s
intriguing intergroup comparisons. Aquarium in May 1999. The stated purpose of
the workshop was to bring together represen-
LITERATURE CITED tatives from all sectors of the ornamental fish
industry with field researchers to discuss find-
BAILEY, W. J., AND J. D. ROBERTS. 1981. The bioacous- ings and review progress of Project Piaba—an
tics of the burrowing frog Heleioporus (Leptodactyl- independent, interdisciplinary project that
idae). J. Nat. Hist. 15:258–288. seeks to understand and promote the economic
BENNET-CLARK, H. C. 1987. The tuned singing burrow and social-cultural systems involved in the or-
of mole crickets. J. Exp. Biol. 128:383–409.
namental fishery of the middle Rio Negro.
FENG, A. S. 1982. Quantitative analysis of intensity-rate
and intensity-latency functions in peripheral audi- The resulting book offers a heterogeneous as-
tory nerve fibers of northern leopard frogs (Rana semblage of papers treating diverse subjects,
p. pipiens). Hearing Res. 6:24–246. ranging from the commercial and practical as-
LARDNER, B. 2002. Tree-hole frogs exploit resonance pects of the ornamental fish trade, aquatic ecol-
effects. Nature 420:475. ogy and biodiversity, and cultural and economic
MÖRCHEN, A. J., J. RHEINLAENDER, AND J. SCHWARTZ- anthropology. The style of presentation reflects
KOPFF. 1978. Latency shift in insect auditory nerve that of a standard academic treatise, wherein
fibers. Naturwissenschaften 65:656. most papers include an abstract (and Portu-
PENNA, M., AND R. SOLı́S. 1996. Influence of burrow
guese resumo), text, acknowledgments, and lit-
acoustics on sound reception by frogs Eusophus
(Leptodactylidae). Anim. Behav. 51:255–263. erature cited. Excerpts from the question and
answer session following the respective work-
PETER M. NARINS, Departments of Physiological Sci- shop presentations accompany most chapters.
ence and OBEE Biology, University of California, However, the volume fails to deliver on the ac-
Los Angeles, 621 Charles E. Young Drive, South, ademic side because of the poor quality and
Los Angeles, California 90095; E-mail: pnarins@ limited scholarship offered by several of the in-
ucla.edu. cluded papers, many of which appear to repre-
sent third-party transcriptions of the oral work-
shop presentations. Contrary to the stated in-
tentions for the volume (p. xiii), the included
papers are not all directly related and well in-
tegrated within the overall theme of the Rio Ne-
CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF gro ornamental fishery since several papers of-
ORNAMENTAL FISH RESOURCES OF THE fer simplistic views of tangential relevance or ad-
RIO NEGRO BASIN, AMAZONIA, BRAZIL— dress issues relevant to the aquarium trade in
 BOOK REVIEWS 673

other regions of the world. The production mate warming (McAllister and Goreau); and
quality of the volume is atrocious, with multiple pet industry involvement in sustainable use,
misspellings, sentence fragments, missing captive breeding, and conservation initiatives
words, and similar errors occurring on nearly (Myers, Dawes). Several of these papers are sim-
every page. The editors acknowledge that sev- plistic, offering cursory treatment and little in-
eral speakers did not review the final versions sight into the issues at hand. The chapter by
of their papers, leaving that task to the editors. Prang is exceptional in providing a fascinating,
I was perplexed, however, to read the statement insightful analysis of the socioeconomics of the
(p. xvi) absolving the editors from responsibility ornamental fish trade. The author describes the
for the ‘‘accuracy of the articles.’’ Perhaps so for dynamic between patron (buyers or atavessa-
the data and interpretations contained in the dores—the intermediary representatives of the
individual papers, but surely five editors (native few local exporters) and client (subsistence fish-
English speakers included among them) should erman or piabeiros) as a barter form of mer-
have been sufficient to eliminate such errors. chant capitalism, analogous with (but somewhat
Furthermore, the volume also fails to provide a modified over) the oligopolistic trade practiced
clear sense of what Project Piaba has accom- in the form of indentured servitude between
plished to date and where it is headed. patron and client rubber tapper during the rub-
The book is organized in three major sec- ber boom years. Now, however, the relationship
tions, plus an overview chapter by three of the between patron exporter and client piabeiro is
five editors (Chao, Prang, Petry) that provides monetary—cash or goods paid for fishes on de-
a general introduction to Project Piaba and livery, rather than as payment for goods ad-
clearly states that project’s objectives: to derive vanced previously by the patron. Also, in con-
a management strategy for the ornamental fish- trast to the seringueiros (rubber tappers), pia-
ery in the vicinity of Barcelos, Brazil, through beiros do not generally incur large debts, are
research on the biology, ecology, and socioeco- free to sell fishes to multiple patrons, and often
nomic factors of direct concern. One issue that are opportunistically engaged in other extrac-
comes through prominently as part of the man- tive activities, fishing only when economically
agement strategy is the desire to move more of most favorable. So that more of the profit re-
the economic benefit of the fish trade to the mains with the piabeiros and their families,
local fishers. At present, most of the profit is Prang argues that direct export of fishes from
garnered by the exporters in Manaus and the Barcelos (rather than from Manaus) should be
importers in Miami. Generation of baseline encouraged. However, this strategy will require
data on aquatic resources is listed among five greater collaboration and provision of govern-
major accomplishments of Project Piaba (p. 4); ment incentives, both of which represent major
however, the volume does not specify or sum- obstacles at present.
marize the scope or content of those data, apart The second major section (Part Three: Aquat-
from listing five unpublished postgraduate the- ic Ecosystem and Biodiversity) offers six papers
ses on abundance and distribution of cardinal on Rio Negro and Amazonian aquatic ecology
tetra and general fish community ecology. An- (Forsberg et al., Walker), review of fishery sta-
other 24 titles are listed among the project’s tistics and diversity of fishes of the middle Rio
bibliography, but only one of these appears to Negro (Chao), description of a proposed study
represent a peer-reviewed empirical paper and on population genetics of the cardinal tetra
concerns the description of a new fish species. (Harris and Petry), review of cytogenetic studies
Given the importance of the cardinal tetra to on Amazonian fishes (Porto et al.), and ecology
the local economy, one would expect that study and fishery biology of aquatic turtles, Peltoce-
of its reproductive ecology, life history, popula- phalus dumerilianus and Podocnemis erythrocephala
tion genetics, development, and husbandry (Vogt). The chapter by Forsberg et al. is essen-
would figure prominently in the research pro- tially a summary description of results from a
gram of Project Piaba. long-term research program examining the in-
The first major section (Part Two: Ornamen- fluence of physical factors on the biological dy-
tal Fish Industry and Local Subsistence) offers namics of the Rio Jaú, a tributary of the lower
eight papers on history of discovery of the car- Rio Negro. Because much of the original data
dinal tetra (Axelrod) and extractive economies was published elsewhere or is contained in un-
in the Barcelos region (Machado); hobbyist in- published theses and because no methods are
volvement via ecotourism (Dowd); socioeco- described, it is difficult to evaluate much of the
nomic organization of the ornamental fishery content and interpretations offered. The paper
in Barcelos (Prang); efforts to promote cyanide- by Walker describes the results of a long-term
free capture of Philippine fishes (Baquero); cli- study of benthic biodiversity of a blackwater for-
674 COPEIA, 2003, NO. 3

est stream near Manaus—a system characterized on the specimens provided to them, with Axel-
by a highly diverse and dense assemblage of rod (1956) contending that they had come
consumer species that overlap greatly in terms from Porto Velho (Rio Madeira), Brazil, and
of resource use, yet has remained stable over Myers contending that they had come from Ma-
the 20-year observation period. However, to ex- naus.
plain this apparent paradox, the author invokes I was left with two general impressions after
an obscure and abstract theoretical argument reading this volume. First, I was disappointed by
that I found to be a distraction and out of place its content and left wanting to know more about
in this volume. Chao provides a nice review of Project Piaba—what science the project has gen-
Project Piaba’s objectives and results to date, erated to date and what is planned for the fu-
mostly related to fishery catch and export dy- ture. The heterogeneity of the included chap-
namics; however, missing data on shipments ters and the numerous errors and editorial
from Barcelos for certain periods and the pro- problems were an inescapable distraction. Sec-
portion of totals represented by cardinal tetra ond, I was left somewhat discouraged about the
make it difficult to distinguish between variance future prospects for the piabeiros in Barcelos.
in environmental conditions affecting produc- The ‘‘Buy a Fish, Save a Tree’’ slogan offer on
tion versus availability of fishes relative to fluc- the outside back cover of the book is a catchy
tuations in market demand as explanations for phrase intended to spark interest in the book
the patterns observed. and in Project Piaba, but it is inaccurate given
The final section (Part Four: Fish Health) in- that the annual flooding of the forests, rather
cludes two papers on veterinary medicine and than the value of the ornamental fishery, effec-
infectious diseases (Lewbart) and the impor- tively prohibits timber extraction in the region.
tance of monitoring water quality during trans- In my rather limited experience, it seems that
port of fishes (Waichman et al.). The former cardinal tetras are now seldom available in local
paper details methods of diagnosis and treat- pet shops, likely because of the increased cost
ment for several diseases and parasite infesta- at retail resulting from higher mortality relative
tions, both common and exotic. The latter to captive-bred neons and other species. At pre-
chapter examines water quality fluctuations dur- sent, the piabeiro’s income from fishing is not
ing transport of fishes from the field to expor- limited by availability of fishes, but rather by
tation and concludes that transport-induced market demand for ornamental fishes that fluc-
stress is primarily responsible for mortality (over tuates widely, has declined steadily at about 8%
50%) at import. per year for the previous four to five years and
In addition to the socioeconomics of the or- is under severe competition from the availability
namental fishery, the history of the discovery of captive bred stocks from Asia and North
and controversy surrounding the original de- America. Wild-caught specimens represent less
scription of the cardinal tetra are almost as col- than 10% of the global market of tropical fresh-
orful as the fish itself. Although not detailed water aquarium fishes, yet remain an important
herein, the literature indicates that a small char- component of the industry from the standpoint
acin similar in color to the neon tetra (Parach- of maintenance of genetic diversity of captive
eirodon innesi) had been discussed by German stocks. Because the ornamental fishery in Bar-
biologists and aquarists as early as 1952 (Weitz- celos represents a fraction of the fishes export-
man, 1956; Geisler and Annibal, 1986). In 1956, ed from South America, one may ask: to what
specimens were sent independently to L. P. extent can efforts to organize and manage the
Schultz by Axelrod, who originally acknowl- Rio Negro fishery at the local level succeed in
edged (Axelrod, 1956) that the specimens had the face of global market conditions that ulti-
been received from a New Jersey fish dealer on mately determine the piabeiro’s potential in-
10—11 Febuary 1956, and to G. S. Myers and S. come from fishing? Project Piaba is to be com-
H. Weitzman by W. T. Innes and Paramount mended for its efforts to promote sustainable
Aquarium (Myers and Weitzman, 1956). Both use and conservation of these aquatic resources.
Schultz (1956) and Myers and Weitzman (1956)
published a description of the species in Feb-
ruary 1956, and, after a contentious debate and LITERATURE CITED
split vote, the International Commission
AXELROD, H. R. 1956. The beautiful scarlet characin
(ICZN) ruled on the priority of the name Chei- Cheirodon axelrodi Schultz. Trop. Fish Hobby 4:16–
rodon axelrodi Schultz (ICZN, 1957; Opinion 17.
485). So that the commercial interests of the BAYLEY, P. B., AND M. PETRERE JR. 1989. Amazon fish-
exporters were protected, these authors were eries: assessment methods, current status and man-
not provided with precise locality information agement options, p. 385–398. In: Proceedings of
 BOOK REVIEWS 675

the international large river symposium, D. P. our system of public education and in the long
Dodge (ed.). Can. Spec. Publ. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 106. run on the future of science in this country.
GEISLER, R., AND S. R. ANNIBAL. 1986. Ecology of the Opposition to the concepts of evolution ap-
cardinal-tetra Paracheirodon axelrodi (Pisces, Chara- pears to be stronger in the United States than
coidea) in the river basin of the Rio Negro/Brazil
as well as breeding-related factors, p. 7–39. In: An-
in any other country in the West. Difficulties in
imal research and development. A biannual collec- apprehending these fundamental biological
tion of recent German contributions concerning principles stem from inadequate education, par-
development through animal research. Vol. 23. A. ticularly in the sciences but in other areas as
Bittner (ed.), Inst. Wissensch. Zusammenarb., Tü- well, and from the long-standing belief in the
bingen, Germany. account of creation given in the Book of Gen-
INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON ZOOLOGICAL NOMEN- esis, a belief reinforced by the purveyors of ul-
CLATURE. 1957. Opinion 485. Determination of the traconservative religious doctrines. It is little un-
relative priority to be assigned to the names Chei- derstood by the public at large that an appre-
rodon axelrodi Schultz (L. P.) and Hyphessobrycon car-
ciation of evolution is basic to an overall under-
dinalis Myers (G. S.) and Weitzman (S. H.) (Class
Pisces), both being names published in February standing of the biological sciences and
1956. Opinions and Declarations Rendered by the undergirds all research in those disciplines. At-
International Commission on Zoological Nomen- tempts to restrict or prevent the teaching of evo-
clature 17:33–49. lutionary theories are clear evidence that many
MYERS, G. S., AND S. H. WEITZMAN. 1956 (21 Febru- people not only do not grasp the centrality of
ary). Two new Brazilian fresh-water fishes. Stanford those concepts to the life sciences but also fail
Ichthyol. Bull. 7:1–4. to appreciate the importance of supporting the
SCHULTZ, L. P. 1956 (20 February). The amazing new freedom to explore ideas that lead to deeper
fish called the scarlet characin (from a letter by Dr. knowledge, even if the facts revealed contradict
Leonard P. Schultz). Trop. Fish Hobby 4:41–43.
conventional wisdom or religious beliefs. A
WEITZMAN, S. H. 1956. The cardinal tetra. Aquar. J.
27:257–259. poorly educated public, religious conservatism,
and an inadequate understanding of academic
freedom, factors that are not entirely indepen-
SCOTT A. SCHAEFER, Division of Vertebrate Zoology, dent, feed upon one another to varying de-
American Museum of Natural History, Central grees, producing an environment that is often
Park West at 79th Street, New York, New York unfriendly to activities of the intellect.
10024-5192; E-mail: [email protected]. In the first chapter, ‘‘Where Did the Contro-
versy Come From?’’ the author presents a short
history of the dispute, touching on events such
as the Huxley-Wilberforce debate, the Scopes
trial, and recent legal encounters, including acts
passed by the legislatures of Arkansas and Lou-
DENYING EVOLUTION: CREATIONISM, SCI- isiana that were ruled as unconstitutional by
ENTISM, AND THE NATURE OF SCIENCE. Federal courts.
Massimo Pigliucci. 2002. Sinauer Associates, ‘‘Evolution-Creationism 101,’’ is the title of
Inc., 23 Plumtree Road, Sunderland, Massachu- the second chapter, in which Pigliucci exam-
setts 01375–0407; E-mail: [email protected]. ines, among other items, the many forms of cre-
ISBN 0-87893-659-9. x 1 338 p. $24.95 (paper- ationism (concentrating on ‘‘scientific creation-
back).—The response by many to another book ism’’ and intelligent design, ID) and what evo-
on the evolution/creationism controversy might lution is and is not. In the United States, many
be ho hum. But Denying Evolution is not ho hum; of the most influential antievolutionists have
it is an important book that deserves wide read- been associated with the Institute for Creation
ership. A review of a volume on the evolution/ Research in El Cajon, California, and/or the
creationism controversy might seem out of Creation Research Society (Numbers, 1992).
place in a journal dedicated to ichthyology and Beginning in the mid-1990s neocreationists and
herpetology, but it is appropriate, I feel, because their ID theory moved to the forefront of the
a very large percentage of the readers of Copeia battle. The neocreationists ‘‘largely do not be-
are involved in some manner with education. It lieve in a young Earth or in a too-literal inter-
should be noted that an active member of pretation of the Bible,’’ but ‘‘neocreationism is
ASIH, Tim Berra, has published a book that still propelled mostly by a religious agenda and
provides a good introduction to the controversy financed by mainly Christian sources, such as
(Berra, 1990). Most people, including many sci- the Templeton Foundation and the Discovery
entists, do not realize the potential harm that a Institute’’ (p. 53–54). The Discovery Institute’s
relatively small number of zealots can inflict on Center for Renewal of Science and Culture in
676 COPEIA, 2003, NO. 3

Seattle is an institutional home for the vast ma- the much larger task of excoriating the natural
jority of the proponents of ID (Scott and sciences in general. Assaults from a group that
Branch, 2002). In a ‘‘Special Report’’ in the knows little of what it assails would hardly war-
April 2002 issue of Natural History (available at rant notice other than bewildered amusement
http://www.actionbioscience.org/evolution/ if the attacks did not have potentially serious
nhmag.html), three leading advocates of ID consequences. ‘‘Outside the community of pro-
stated the case for intelligent design and three fessional scientists and engineers, understand-
evolutionists offered rebuttal. ing of even the most elementary science is thin
Pigliucci expounds at some length, in chapter and vague’’ (Gross and Levitt, 1994:244).
3 on the dangers of anti-intellectualism, identi- Against such a background, the pronounce-
fying five basic kinds, viz., antirationalism, anti- ments of the scientifically illiterate academic left
elitism, unreflective instrumentalism (the obses- have the potential of doing great mischief.
sion with immediate practical value), unreflec- To be fair, I must hasten to point out that
tive hedonism, and academic postmodernism. there are scientists (mostly outside the biologi-
To systematists, a very disturbing example of cal sciences) who might be considered mem-
anti-intellectualism (and extreme shortsighted- bers of the academic right (certainly many of
ness), especially in view of the crisis in biodiver- them belong to the Christian right) who have
sity, is the de-emphasizing of collections and col- declared that evolution is only a theory and not
lection-oriented research in natural history mu- a fact. Declarations of this type do nothing to
seums and academic institutions in many coun- clarify the nature of science nor increase the
tries, including the United States, whether as understanding of evolutionary biology.
responses to budgetary concerns (real or per- Chapter 4, entitled ‘‘Scientific Fundamental-
ceived), attempts to appeal to a public that ap- ism and the True Nature of Science,’’ is devoted
preciates exhibits more than basic research, or to discussing scientism (‘‘the fundamentalist be-
acquiescence to the strident voices of those who lief that science can do no wrong and will ulti-
consider only so-called cutting-edge science mately answer any question worth answering
worthy of pursuit. while in the process saving humankind as a bo-
Until relatively recently, attacks on evolution- nus,’’ p. 114), the history of science (briefly),
ary biology came almost entirely from right- the nature of science, popular beliefs about sci-
wing religionists. Now the postmodernists of the ence that are (mostly) not true, the limits of
academic left have joined the conflict, ‘‘post- science, the alternatives to science, and reality.
modernism and related ‘isms,’ such as decon- In chapter 5, the author takes up 11 creation-
structionism and poststructuralism’’ being ‘‘per- ist fallacies (e.g., scientific discussions are a sign
haps the most astounding version of anti-intel- of internal crisis, the world can be understood
lectualism’’ (p. 103). Postmodernists are espe- by common sense, living beings are obviously
cially exercised by evolutionary explanations for designed, science is a religion). One of the fre-
attributes of human behavior or culture, with quently repeated fallacies of creationism, be it
many social theorists allowing innate biology orthodox or neo-, is that organic evolution is
only in a constraining role—‘‘a set of natural merely a theory and not a fact. Disregarding the
limits on human functioning’’ (Ehrenreich and philosophical problems that one might encoun-
McIntosh, 1997:12). Ehrenreich and McIntosh ter in trying to ascertain the meaning of the
(1997:12) have called the extreme form of left- word ‘‘fact,’’ most evolutionary biologists would
wing enmity to biology ‘‘secular creationism,’’ have little problem with the statement that ‘‘in
which is ‘‘a creed that denies our biological her- the ordinary usage of the word fact, evolution is
itage has anything to do with what people want a fact.’’ Creationists conveniently ignore the na-
or how they act’’ (Cartmill, 1998:82). ‘‘Like ture of scientific theories. As noted by Pigliucci
their fundamentalist Christian counterparts, the (p. 168): ‘‘Scientific theories are complex and
most extreme antibiologists suggest that hu- elaborate statements . . . that provide a general
mans occupy a status utterly different from and explanatory framework for large portions of the
clearly ‘above’ that of all other living beings. world.’’ Theories, legitimately called scientific,
And, like the religious fundamentalists, the new are testable (hence falsifiable) and supported
academic creationists defend their stance as if by a large number of facts. Intelligent design
all of human dignity—and all hope for the fu- and other creationists theories are not testable
ture—were at stake’’ (Ehrenreich and McIn- and lack factual support.
tosh, 1997:12). In chapter 6, the author considers three ma-
The academic left, composed mainly of hu- jor elements of the controversy (the second law
manists and social scientists, has not limited its of thermodynamics, the origin of life, and the
attacks to evolutionary biology but has taken on Cambrian explosion), and in chapter 7, scien-
 BOOK REVIEWS 677

tific fallacies. In Pigliucci’s words (p. 234), ‘‘Per- review. This is Contribution Number 216 of the
haps the most important fallacy that scientists Grice Marine Biological Laboratory.
and educators often commit is what I refer to
as the rationalistic fallacy. . . . If you insist on LITERATURE CITED
thinking that all you need to do is explain
things just a little bit better and people will see ANDERSON JR., W. D. 2002. Andrew C. Moore’s ‘‘Evo-
the light, you are committing the rationalistic lution once more’’: the evolution-creationism con-
fallacy.’’ troversy from an early 1920s perspective. Bull. Ala.
Perhaps often seen as more of a southern Mus. Nat. Hist. 22:I–ii 1 1–35.
BERRA, T. M. 1990. Evolution and the myth of crea-
phenomenon than a nationwide one, the con-
tionism: a basic guide to the facts in the evolution
temporary antievolution activity, or creationist debate. Stanford Univ. Press, Stanford, CA.
movement, is far from being geographically re- CARTMILL, M. 1998. Oppressed by evolution. Discover
stricted. In fact, the educational governing bod- 19(3):78–83.
ies in Kansas and Ohio have recently felt the EHRENREICH, B., AND J. MCINTOSH. 1997. The new cre-
zeal of the antievolutionists. Fortunately, com- ationism. Nation 264(22):11–16.
mon sense has prevailed in both states. Surpris- GROSS, P. R., AND N. LEVITT. 1994. Higher supersti-
ingly, perhaps, the reach of creationism extends tion: the academic left and its quarrels with science.
Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, Baltimore, MD.
well beyond the borders of the United States,
NUMBERS, R. L. 1992. The creationists. Alfred A.
stretching into Canada, Latin America, Great Knopf, New York. [1993, paperback printing, Univ.
Britain, continental Europe, Africa, much of of California Press, Berkeley.]
Asia, Australia, and New Zealand (Numbers, SCOTT, E. C., AND G. BRANCH. 2002. ‘‘Intelligent de-
1992). sign’’ not accepted by most scientists. Schl. Bd.
In the final chapter of Denying Evolution, Pig- News 22(10):2, 5.
liucci addresses the problem of scientific illit-
eracy and presents an agenda to rectify the sit- WILLIAM D. ANDERSON JR., Grice Marine Biological
uation, proposing 14 steps that he considers es- Laboratory, College of Charleston, 205 Fort John-
sential. Some of them (such as instituting truly son, Charleston, South Carolina 29412-9110;
interdisciplinary courses and curricula in E-mail: [email protected].
schools and universities and providing continu-
ing education in evolutionary biology for high
school teachers) will probably meet with gen-
eral approval from academe, but others (e.g.,
changing the hiring practices in universities and
FISHES IN ESTUARIES. M. Elliott and K. L.
removing the lecture format from the class-
Hemingway (eds.). 2002. Blackwell Science Ltd.,
room) will likely receive far less support. London, England. ISBN 0-632-05733-5. xv 1
In closing this volume, Pigliucci added two 656 p., 74 figs. $140.00 U.S. (£89.50) (hard-
appendices that are like dessert after a multi- back).—This extensive volume brings together
course meal. Appendix A, ‘‘Introduction to and the collective expertise of 25 scientists from 18
Excerpts from David Hume’s Dialogues Con- laboratories in 11 European countries. It rep-
cerning Natural Religion, Where the Topic of resents a collation and synthesis of previous
Intelligent Design is Discussed Most Thorough- studies, both peer-reviewed and from the gray
ly’’ (David Hume, 1711–1776, Scottish philoso- literature (e.g., European Union directives,
pher and historian), and Appendix B, ‘‘Bryan’s committee reports), across numerous types of
Last Speech’’ (William Jennings Bryan, 1860– estuaries including rias, lagoons, stratified and
1925, three times unsuccessful candidate for the well-mixed bodies. The emphasis throughout
presidency of the United States and a prosecu- the book is on estuarine fish (and sometimes
tor at the Scopes trial), offer an interesting con- crustacean) assemblages of the European Atlan-
trast in Weltanschauungen or conceptions of the tic seaboard and Mediterranean Sea. In fact, it
world. Some of the subjects touched upon here- has such a European flavor that the book could
in are developed more extensively in my cri- have just as easily been titled ‘‘Fishes in Euro-
tique of the essay entitled ‘‘Evolution Once pean Estuaries.’’ This volume is timely because
More’’ (Anderson, 2002). Denying Evolution is in- until only recently (beginning in the 1990s), Eu-
formative, interesting, and here and there en- ropean estuaries received little attention relative
tertaining. It has my strongest recommenda- to those in the United States, Australia, and
tion. Tim M. Berra and Lester D. Stephens read South Africa. Throughout this book, there is an
drafts of the manuscript and offered sugges- emphasis on the nursery role of estuaries. Un-
tions that greatly enhanced the quality of this fortunately the recent review and reevaluation
678 COPEIA, 2003, NO. 3

of the nursery concept (Beck et al., 2001) was augment the understanding of the selection of
published too late to be incorporated into this sampling techniques.
volume, yet it and related papers (Minello et al., In chapter 10, the senior editor attempts to
2003; Heck et al., 2003; Gillanders et al., 2003), briefly synthesize, in a European context, the
provide extensive coverage of the worldwide lit- essence of the importance of estuaries to fishes
erature on topics related to European estuaries. and in the process recognizes the linkages be-
Chapter 2 is a categorization of the habitats tween estuarine fish production and areas both
of fishes across 26 estuaries in European waters upstream and downstream. The emphasis on
ranging from the Boreal/Northwest Atlantic, fishes of commercial and conservation impor-
the Baltic/Skagerrak, to the Mediterranean. tance and their habitats is carried over into spe-
This categorization is based upon general cific recommendation for further study and
knowledge of the ecology of the different spe- management of estuarine fishes.
cies or on the experience of the scientist study- It is anticipated that the findings of this book
ing the estuarine population. Further attempts could be used to provide ecologically based
were made to classify the fauna relative to hab- guidelines for the preservation, restoration, and
itat use (feeding, nursery, spawning, and diad- management of fish populations in European
romy) and by ecological guilds (diadromous, estuaries and an important perspective for the
freshwater, estuarine, marine adventitious, ma- study of estuaries everywhere. For this reason,
rine juvenile migrants, and marine seasonal mi- this book would be a useful addition to the
grants). The ranking of the most important bookshelf of anyone interested in estuarine fish-
habitat, that is, subtidal soft substratum, appears es.
to be largely influenced by habitat quantity and
not independent measures of habitat quality. LITERATURE CITED
The idea that ‘‘more fish species use estuaries
as adult feeding grounds than as nursery areas’’ BECK, M. W., K. L. HECK JR., K. W. ABLE, D. CHILDERS,
D. EGGLESTON, B. M. GILLANDERS, B. HALPERN, C.
deserves further attention (p. 43). HAYS, K. HOSHINO, T. MINELLO, R. ORTH, P. SHERI-
Recruitment and production of commercially DAN, AND M. WEINSTEIN. 2001. The identification,
important species that are estuarine dependent conservation, and management of estuarine and
are the foci of chapter 3, with the reminder that marine nurseries for fish and invertebrates. Bio-
the complexity of fish life histories make un- Science 51:633–641.
derstanding these processes very difficult. In GILLANDERS, B. M., K. W. ABLE, J. A. BROWN, D. B.
Europe, as elsewhere, the degree of estuarine EGGLESTON, AND P. F. SHERIDAN. 2003. Evidence of
dependence needs further clarification. connectivity between juvenile and adult habitats for
mobile marine fauna: an important component of
Chapter 4 is an extensive review of the links nurseries. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Series 247:281–295.
between juvenile and adult fishes (primarily HECK JR., K. L., C. G. HAYS, AND R. J. ORTH. 2003.
those of commercial importance) and other top Critical evaluation of the nursery role hypothesis
predators (seals, birds, cetaceans) and lower for seagrass meadows. Ibid. 253:123–136.
consumers (cephalopods, shrimps, crabs). MINELLO, T., K. W. ABLE, M. P. WEINSTEIN, AND C. G.
There are several approaches to understanding HAYS. 2003. Salt marshes as nurseries for nekton:
these trophic links, including by habitat and testing hypotheses on density, growth, and survival
feeding guild and by the proximate factors af- through meta-analysis. Ibid. 246:39–59.
fecting consumption and production.
In chapters 5 through 7 the numerous au- KENNETH W. ABLE, Marine Field Station, Institute
thors comment extensively on the types of es- of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers Univer-
sity, 800 c/o 132 Great Bay Blvd., Tuckerton, New
tuarine impacts, an important focus given that
Jersey 08087-2004; E-mail: [email protected].
these estuaries have been altered by humans
since Roman times. Even in the last century, the
loss of estuarine habitats has been estimated at
51% for 22 selected estuaries. There is much
less discussion of restoration because it is ‘‘little
practiced in Europe’’ (p. 302). INLAND FISHES OF MASSACHUSETTS. Kar-
Chapters 8 and 9 were designed to provide sten E. Hartel, David B. Halliwell, and Alan E.
an overview of approaches and consistency of Launer. 2002. Massachusetts Audubon Society,
method/protocols for studying fishes in estuar- Lincoln, Massachusetts. ISBN 0-932691-28-5.
ies. As a consequence, these chapters provide a 328 p. $39.95 (hardcover).—The format of state
useful review of methods that may be unfamiliar fish books has been codified in the last few de-
to scientists from other regions. Case studies cades, and this volume follows that format with
 BOOK REVIEWS 679

few changes. The Introduction briefly provides accounts. There are 16 color plates, grouped as
general information on fishes and a table show- a signature, in the middle of the book. The
ing relationships among the higher taxa. The book ends with references, a figure reviewing
classification scheme largely follows Nelson distribution by watershed, a glossary, and a tax-
(1994) but treats the Ostariophysi as the sister onomic index.
group to the Clupeomorpha (Lecointre and The keys work well in part because the fishes
Nelson 1996) and does not include the esocids of Massachusetts’s inland waters are very differ-
within the Protacanthopterygii ( Johnson and ent morphologically. Although 84 species reside
Patterson 1996). The authors then review the in the state, they fall into 56 genera. Thirty-six
history of ichthyology in the state, provide brief genera are monotypic in the state and only two
biographies of the major contributors to this genera, Esox and Lepomis, are represented by
field of study, primarily Storer, McCabe, and four taxa, and Esox has to rely on a stocked hy-
Reed, and mention many of the minor contrib- brid to make the count. Given the relative ease
utors. In the following chapter, the authors pre- of identifying these fishes and the abbreviated
sent a plea to protect and take pleasure in fish- species accounts, one question might be: why is
es. It is a curious, but effective, combination of a book on Massachusetts’s fishes needed? After
a discussion on declining fish stocks and imper- all, one can glean information on these fishes
ilment and pointers on how to observe, photo- from Smith (1985) or Scott and Crossman
graph, and enjoy fishes in the wild. Next, the (1973)? There are two answers. This volume in-
authors delimit the scope of the book by intro- cludes unpublished information (recent and
ducing the geographic extent of the state and updated) on the within-state distribution of
its drainages and watersheds; by providing brief each species. With the current interest in bio-
summaries of both fossil and modern fishes; diversity, it is important that this type of infor-
and by discussing the zoogeography of the fish- mation be readily available. The volume also
es, primarily the effect of deglaciation on mi- provides a late 20-century status report of each
gration and distribution. The last introductory species in the state, identifying which are im-
chapter reviews the information needed to periled, exotic, declining in numbers, or ex-
identify fishes: anatomy, terms, methods for panding in range. Although this information is
measuring and counting. It also includes basic not necessarily new or unpublished, this book is
information on the development of the range the first compilation of this material into a stan-
maps and an introduction to the keys, family, dard, organized format. When comparisons are
and species accounts. made later this century, the snapshot presented
The rest of the book deals directly with the in this book will be crucial. The second answer
fishes. The first key can be used to identify a is that not everybody needs or wants the kind
fish to family or, if the family is monotypic in of detail available in, for example, Smith
the state, to species. Of the 27 families in the (1985). The authors recognized this and pro-
inland waters of the state, 12 families are rep- duced a tidy focused book for an audience that
resented by a single species in Massachusetts. includes managers, nature-lovers, and students.
The key is excellent—each couplet includes fig- It is apparent from the outset that the work is
ures showing the characteristics forming the di- directed to a broad general audience. The au-
chotomy and is easy to use. The Family Key thors rarely use metric units; common names
sends the reader to the family accounts and in- take precedence over scientific; the size of a spe-
cludes the page number on which that account cies (including record sizes of game fishes) is
begins. Family accounts have taxonomic, eco- given importance; accounts do not include tax-
logical, and general life-history information and onomic descriptions of the species.
a key to species. Species keys follow the format In line with this focus, the authors treat all
of the family key, with figures of the key char- inland fishes equally and do not artificially
acteristics and directions to the page where the group them into freshwater and marine com-
species account begins. Likewise, these keys are ponents. Nothing is more frustrating for a truly
excellent, straightforward, and can be used safe- inexperienced person than to catch a mummi-
ly throughout New England. Species accounts chog in a marsh just downriver from Albany, for
comprise seven paragraphs: identification, se- example, and attempt to identify it using the
lected counts, size, natural history, distribution keys in Smith (1985). An individual that really
and abundance, an interesting ‘‘note’’ about does not know the identity of a fish is not going
the fish, and a short list of references. Each ac- to know whether it is primarily freshwater or a
count also includes a line drawing of the species marine stray. The individual only is going to
and a dot map of the distribution of the species know where the fish was caught. It makes no
within the state. Brevity is the essence of these sense to provide different keys and accounts for
680 COPEIA, 2003, NO. 3

a fish taken from inland waters or to ignore res- fishes of Canada. Fish. Res. Bd. Can. Bull. 184:1–
ident marine fishes entirely. The authors are to 966.
be commended for first ignoring, and then in- SMITH, C. L. 1985. The inland fishes of New York
tegrating, these two, artificial groups. state. Dept. Environ. Conserv., Albany, NY.
As I read the book, two themes emerged that
ROBERT A. DANIELS, New York State Museum, Cul-
captured my attention. The first is the shock-
tural Education Center 3140, Albany, New York
ingly high number of exotic species in the state.
12230; E-mail: [email protected].
Some of the most widely distributed fishes in
the state, yellow bullhead, brown trout, bluegill,
the black basses, are introduced. In fact, six of
the 17 minnows, five of the six bullhead catfish-
es, and seven of the 10 centrarchids are exotic.
Interestingly, of the 11 native minnows, four are INLAND FISHES OF CALIFORNIA. Revised
imperiled. The second theme that surfaced is Edition. Peter B. Moyle. 2002. University of Cal-
that, aside from the authors and McCabe, very ifornia Press, Berkeley, California. ISBN 0-520-
few people have been looking at the fishes of 22754-9. 517 p. $70.00 (cloth).—With the first
Massachusetts. Lampetra appendix was discovered edition of Inland Fishes in 1976, a recently ar-
and correctly identified in the 1960s by Musick rived fish enthusiast stepped into the waters of
(from Virginia) and Hoff while they were trout California, exploring what fishes were there,
fishing in a Cape Cod stream. Not only were the what we knew about them, and how humans
synoptic surveys needed to determine distribu- had changed the character and fate of the
tion of fishes rare, there also was little state-spe- state’s unique ichthyofauna. He produced a
cific information on the natural history of fishes book that can be found, in well-thumbed con-
collected. As a result, species accounts through- dition, on the shelves of most western fish bi-
out the book heavily relied on studies conduct- ologists. In this new edition, Moyle has revisited
ed elsewhere. In a state that seems to have a his initial effort and brought to bear the benefit
college on every other street corner, it is odd of another quarter century of his own experi-
that so little effort has been spent on the local ence as an active player in the exploration and
fish fauna. Maybe the presence of this excellent conservation of California’s fishes. Inland Fishes
compilation will spur activity in the next few of California is primarily a synthesis of the avail-
years and prod instructors and funding agencies able information on the distribution, biology,
to support and encourage student projects ex- and status of all native and introduced fishes
amining the natural history of these fishes. that regularly occur in fresh or brackish waters
Several features commend this book, but the of the state, combined with a strong dose of the
best tribute is this: the authors produced a author’s conservation ethic.
straightforward, clean, thorough treatment of The chapter on distribution patterns briefly
the fishes of Massachusetts. That it is also the summarizes the fish faunas of six zoogeographic
first time that the fishes of this state have been provinces and 21 subprovinces. The single dis-
covered completely is also impressive. The book tributional checklist of the 1976 edition has
is a valuable reference and will serve as a bench- been updated and expanded into four extensive
mark for future comparative work. The book is tables. Some errors in the earlier edition have
worth having whether you are an academic or been corrected, and the Sacramento sucker, Ca-
an angler, a student or a teacher. tostomus occidentalis, is no longer listed as intro-
duced into the Klamath Basin. However, the
new edition’s tables contain some new errors.
LITERATURE CITED
For example, in Table 2, upper and lower Klam-
JOHNSON, G. D., AND C. PATTERSON. 1996. Relation- ath zones (1a and 1b) are reversed from the
ships of lower euteleostean fishes, p. 251–332. In: map; the Klamath River lamprey, Lampetra simi-
Interrelationships of fishes. M. L. J. Stiassny, L. R. lis, is not shown as occurring in the lower Klam-
Parenti, and G. D. Johnson (eds.). Academic Press, ath Basin, which includes the Klamath River
San Diego, CA. and type locality (Vladykov and Kott, 1979; Lo-
LECOINTRE, G., AND G. NELSON. 1996. Clupeomorpha, rion et al., 2000); and many of the species native
sister-group of Ostariophysi, p. 193–207. In: Inter-
to the upper Klamath Basin, which are also pre-
relationships of fishes. M. L. J. Stiassny, L. R. Par-
enti, and G. D. Johnson (eds.). Academic Press, San sent in the downstream reservoirs and were list-
Diego, CA. ed with qualifiers in the 1976 edition, are not
NELSON, J. S. 1994. Fishes of the world. 3d ed. John listed for the lower Basin in the new edition. For
Wiley and Sons, New York. the geological history and relationships of west-
SCOTT, W. B., AND E. J. CROSSMAN. 1973. Freshwater ern fishes Moyle has depended extensively on
 BOOK REVIEWS 681

the summary work of Minckley et al. (1986). life history, and status. Subsections often lack
Many statements are not referenced. Some are consistent organization among species. For ex-
apparently conjectural, such as the presumed ample, the identification sections for Sacramen-
elimination of a native Pit River fish fauna by to and Modoc suckers, Catostomus occidentalis
invading Sacramento River fishes in the Pleis- and C. microps, two sympatric species easily con-
tocene, while others are inaccurate. For exam- fused, are so jumbled and dissimilar that it takes
ple, Moyle divides the Klamath Basin into two a real effort to compare characters. The status
subprovinces, with distinct faunas above and be- sections provide numerous cautionary notes but
low Klamath Falls. Klamath Falls is actually the frequently contain unsupported statements and
name of a town next to the Link River rapids. opinions (noted by Moyle in the Preface). Some
It is not a faunal barrier, and at least half of the may be correct, but the reader often has no way
historical habitat of many endemic upper Klam- to assess their accuracy.
ath fishes was in Lower Klamath and Tule lakes, The accounts are generally informative and
below the Link River but above the ecologically provide a good review of available information.
distinct Klamath River canyon. Nevertheless, the As is to be expected in a broad faunal review,
author weaves a fascinating tapestry and conveys those particularly familiar with specific taxa will
both the complexity and historical uncertainty find inaccuracies. The Pit-Klamath brook lam-
of California’s ichthyofauna. prey, Lampetra lethophaga, is also found in the
The chapter on ecology summarizes the gen- upper Williamson River (Lorion et al., 2000).
eral character of species assemblages in the di- The Goose Lake populations of Modoc sucker
verse habitats found throughout the state, from were actually not rediscovered until 2001, and
the coastal streams and deltas to the large in- the population in Bauer’s Creek has not been
terior river systems like the Sacramento and relocated (the text misquoted personal com-
Colorado Rivers. General principles are sup- munications attributed to this reviewer).
ported by examples from numerous ecological The bibliography is extensive and includes
studies, often by Moyle or his students. Moyle’s nearly 1600 entries relating to California’s in-
brief coverage of this complex subject provides land fishes. Citations are numbered in the text
the flavor of both diversity and structure in and provided in abbreviated form (author,
aquatic ecosystems, while conveying the unique- date) at the end of each species account. The
ness of the California setting. Unfortunately, al- citations in the text are not numerically sequen-
though some studies were cited in the text, tial, and although the system saves on print, it
much of the information was not referenced, does not allow the reader to easily access the
and the reader is left to glean the source, un- source of statements without continually thumb-
guided, from the species accounts or bibliogra- ing back to the end of the section. Personal
phy. communications and unpublished documents
The chapter on conservation strategy is taken with no bibliographic information provided are
from Moyle’s own heart and, unlike the other cited extensively in the text (278 such citations
chapters, requires few citations. In it he express- in the species accounts alone). However, there
es both his conservation philosophy and vision is no citation list providing the reader with pro-
for the future. Although this section seems to fessional or contact information. Over a third
divert the reader from the details of fish biology, of the citations provide only a name, with no
it also serves to ground us with the reminder affiliation, and 15 contain no year for the com-
that, if we are to study fishes, we, as biologists munication. Dated personal communications
and citizens, must play a role in their fate. range from 1971–2001 (21 pre-1976 and only 23
The chapter on identification has been re- from 2001). Seven of the 2001 citations were
worked to reflect taxonomic or faunal changes. attributed to this reviewer in the Modoc sucker
Explanation of characters used in the key is account, of which three would have been un-
brief, and the reader is referred to Hubbs and acceptable without revision had drafts been pro-
Lagler’s Fishes of the Great Lakes Region (1958), vided. Although Moyle’s use of personal com-
which will not be available to many. I had an munications is clearly an attempt to provide in-
opportunity to use the key during fieldwork in formation that was not otherwise available at
northern California and found it worked well. the time of publication, it takes both the author
The species accounts include 70 native fishes and reader down a slippery path by publication
and 49 introduced species. Two new lampreys of preliminary, anecdotal, or inaccurate infor-
and nine new introduced species are added to mation that is not easily checked.
the earlier list. Each species account includes a The illustrations are excellent. All but a few
drawing and sections on identification, taxono- introduced species are illustrated in ink draw-
my, origin of names, distribution (with map), ings in the species accounts, mostly by Chris M.
682 COPEIA, 2003, NO. 3

van Dyck and Alan Marciochi, with additional vesting and the extensive anthropogenic modi-
fine drawings provided from an assortment of fications of sturgeons’ large-river habitats. Re-
sources. New to this edition are 37 beautiful col- cent publications have detailed these declines
or plates of a representative assortment of na- and have begun to fill in some of the large gaps
tive fishes drawn by Joseph Tomelleri. in our knowledge concerning basic systematics,
Inland Fishes provides the reader with a very biology, and ecology of sturgeons from a global
complete introduction to the fishes of Califor- perspective (e.g., Birstein et al., 1997; Proceed-
nia and the complexity of their conservation. ings of the 4th International Symposium on
The species accounts provide a good review of Sturgeon, 2002). As the title suggests, Biology,
available information, and the expanded bibli- Management, and Protection of North American Stur-
ography is an excellent resource. Moyle’s fre- geon focuses on biological and ecological re-
quent use of personal communications and un- search useful in management and conservation
referenced statements, although providing oth- of sturgeons within North America. The collec-
erwise unavailable details and opinions, some- tion of 20 papers by 57 different authors is
times make it difficult for the reader to evaluate based on a symposium held at the American
the information he provides. Nevertheless, this Fisheries Society annual meeting in St. Louis,
is a book most western fish biologists will want Missouri, in August 2000. The first paper is a
on their shelves (replacing the 1976 edition) summary and synthesis of the subsequent pa-
and will inevitably be well used. pers and of two panel discussions held during
the symposium (Secor et al.). The remaining
LITERATURE CITED papers are divided into three parts: (1) Concep-
tual Overviews and Long-Term Studies; (2)
HUBBS, C. L., AND K. F. LAGLER. 1958. Fishes of the Short-Term Studies on Habitat, Movement, and
Great Lakes region. Univ. of Michigan Press, Ann Behavior; and (3) Protection, Enhancement,
Arbor. and Species Differences.
LORION, C. M., D. F. MARKLE, S. B. REID, AND M. F. No paper within this volume examines North
DOCKER. 2000. Redescription of the presumed-ex-
American sturgeon as a whole; the emphasis is
tinct Miller Lake lamprey, Lampetra minima. Copeia
2000:1019–1028. on single species (15 papers) or two congeners
MINCKLEY, W. L., D. A. HENDRICKSON, AND C. E. BOND. (three papers). Almost half of the papers in-
1986. Geography of western North American fresh- volve one species, Acipenser transmontanus. Two
water fishes: description and relationships to inter- review articles examine potential factors con-
continental tectonism, p. 519–614. In: The zooge- tributing to spawning and recruitment failures
ography of North American freshwater fishes. C. H. in two populations of this species (Parsley et al.;
Hocutt and E. O. Wiley (eds.). John Wiley and Anders et al.), and another paper develops a
Sons, New York. model to suggest which factors contribute to
VLADYKOV, V. D., AND E. KOTT. 1979. A new parasitic lack of recruitment in river segments separated
species of the holarctic lamprey genus Entosphenus
by dams ( Jager et al.). Population enhancement
Gill, 1862 (Petromyzonidae) from Klamath River, in
California and Oregon. Can. J. Zool. 57:808–823. of A. transmontanus is investigated through catch
and release regulations (Cochnauer), trans-
STEWART B. REID, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, plants of subadults from a free-flowing river into
6610 Washburn Way, Klamath Falls, Oregon an upstream reservoir (Rien and North), and
97603; E-mail: [email protected]. stocking of hatchery-reared juveniles (Ireland et
al.). Finally, early life-history stages of A. trans-
montanus are considered to determine contam-
inant uptake and survival (Kruse and Scarnec-
chia) and to compare morphology and growth
with the sympatric Acipenser medirostris (Deng et
BIOLOGY, MANAGEMENT, AND PROTEC- al.). Studies on other species of Acipenser in-
TION OF NORTH AMERICAN STURGEON. clude the assessment of spawning stock in a
Webster Van Winkle, Paul J. Anders, David H. population of Acipenser fulvescens (Peterson et
Secor, and Douglas A. Dixon (eds.). 2002. al.) and evaluating passage structures in dams
American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Mary- for juveniles of this species and for Acipenser bre-
land. ISBN 1-888569-36-0. 274 p. $60.00 (paper- virostrum (Amaral et al.). Other studies on A.
back).—Sturgeons (family Acipenseridae) are brevirostrum include risk modeling (Root) and
among the most imperiled fishes worldwide, passage restrictions (Cooke et al.) for two pop-
with many species threatened, endangered, or ulations separated by a dam and a paper detail-
possibly extinct. The demise of this Holarctic ing the results of stock enhancement with
family is primarily caused by commercial har- hatchery-propagated juveniles (Smith et al.).
 BOOK REVIEWS 683

Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus is the subject of a closely related species are not considered. Er-
capture-location and growth-rate study on wild rors within the text are few, and papers are gen-
and hatchery-reared sturgeon (Welsh et al.) and erally of good quality, although several are
of an estimate of historic abundance through- heavy on the methods and light on results and
out the species’ range (Secor). Habitat use is discussion. Over half of the articles have at least
examined in a population of Acipenser oxyrinchus one figure that is of poor quality. Maps are typ-
desotoi (Fox et al.), and three Acipenser species ically pixelated and hard to read, many plots
are used in elasticity analyses to determine po- have symbols or lines that are very light, and
tential to increase population growth rate by im- several axes have labels that are poorly present-
proving survival and fecundity (Gross et al.). ed.
Only two articles investigate species within Sca- This book will be a valuable reference for
phirhynchus, one on habitat use by hatchery- those biologists working with sturgeons in the
reared Scaphirhynchus albus (Snook et al.) and highly modified large-river habitats of North
the other with a character index developed to America. Many of the studies presented in this
differentiate among S. albus, Scaphirhynchus pla- volume will serve as useful templates for future
torynchus, and potential hybrids of these two research endeavors with these imperiled fishes.
sympatric species (Wills et al.).
The scope of each paper within this volume LITERATURE CITED
is generally narrow, typically concentrating on
one population of a single species. The strength BIRSTEIN, V. J., J. R. WALDMAN, AND W. E. BEMIS. 1997.
Sturgeon biodiversity and conservation. Kluwer Ac-
of this approach is that much-needed detailed ademic Publishers, New York.
information is made available to resource-agen- PROCEEDINGS OF THE 4TH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM
cy managers and operators of water-resource ON STURGEON. 2002. J. Applied Ichthyol. 18:219–
projects; indeed most of the authors of these 698.
papers are employed by state or federal agen-
cies, power companies, or consulting firms. Un- BERNARD R. KUHAJDA, Department of Biological Sci-
fortunately, none of these authors discuss their ences, Box 870345, University of Alabama, Tusca-
findings within a phylogenetic framework; loosa, Alabama 34587-0345; E-mail: bkuhajda@
therefore, applications of their results to other bama.ua.edu.