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 This is the quarterly publication of the Conchologists of America, Inc., which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. This very readable and fully illustrated colour journal reflects its lively membership. Full details on http://coa.acnatsci.org/conchnet/ Roger Hanlon and John B Messenger 1996. 248 pages, 8 colour plates, 27 halftone, 81 line drawings. ISBN 0-521-42083-0. Hardback. £350. Cambridge University Press. Describes and summarizes field and laboratory data from a wide variety of sources in the first comprehensive account of cephalopods in their natural habitat. The authors examine their complex forms of communication using skin colour and pattern, prey location and capture, reproduction, learning and avoidance of predators, emphasizing gaps in out knowledge to stimulate more students and researchers of animal behaviour to study these fascinating animals. Cephalopod Neurobiology:Neuroscience Studies in Squid, Octopus, and Cuttlefish N Joan Abbott, Roddy Williamson and Linda Maddock (editors) 1995. 560 pages, 132 illustr. ISBN 0-19-854790-0. £370. Oxford University Press. Cephalopods are among the most intelligent invertebrates, with highly developed nervous systems which provide excellent model systems for investigating basic questions in neuroscience. Within the last five years, many of the powerful techniques of molecular biology and electrophysiology have been applied to cephalopods, with exciting results. In 32 chapters, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the functioning of the cephalopod nervous system, from the cellular level to their complex sensory systems, locomotion, learning and social behaviour. Of interest to both vertebrate and invertebrate neurobiologists, and anyone interested in the basic principles that control neural function. A Field Guide To The Pelagic Invertebrate Larvae Of The Maritime AntarticDamon
Stanwell-Smith, Alison Hood & Lloyd Peck ISBN 0-85665-197-4. British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge, UK. 152 pp. Price £335. Zooplankton samples taken in spring and summer from temperate coastal waters are characterised by large quantities of invertebrate larvae derived from bottom-dwelling parents - including bivalve and gastropod molluscs, barnacles, echinoderms, bryozoans and coelenterates. It is conventional wisdom ("Thorson's Rule") that the Antarctic zooplankton is distinguished by an almost total absence of such larval forms. There is a considerable literature demonstrating that Antarctic benthic species show supression of the larval stage and/or brooding of the young. When working at South Georgia in 1995 I was struck by the ubiquity of brooding in intertidal bivalve molluscs drawn from groups that were only distantly related, while plankton samples taken throughout the summer were totally dominated by the permanent planktonic forms (copepods, krill, chaetognaths and pteropods). It has long been known that there are pelagic larvae of benthic forms in Antarctic waters, but they have been regarded as few in number, and extremely rare. Until 1990 only 12 larval types had been identified from the Southern Ocean. This guide was derived from a sampling programme carried out at the South Orkney British Antarctic Survey Base of Signy Island between 1992 and 1995, primarily by the first author, Damon Stanwell-Smith. The survey used novel SCUBA-based techniques that permitted collection beneath sea-ice as well as in open water, and which also allowed demersal larvae (near-bottom dwelling) to be collected. Details of survey techniques are given in the Introduction to the volume; preservation protocols are presented in an Appendix. The rest of the guide is predominantly made up of drawings, photographs and scanning electron micrographs of the collected larvae, which are presented in categories (planulae, pilidia, annelids, sipunculids, cypids, molluscs, lophophorates, echinoderms and tunicates). The drawings include small thumbnail sketches, and have neatly handwritten legends, evoking the classic approach to plankton taxonomy. In almost all cases it has not been possible to identify the species concerned (the Antarctic limpet, Nacella concinna being a noteworthy exception), so taxonomic description is limited to subcategories such as `gastropod veliger', `molluscan trochophore' or `bryozoan cyphonautes'. Some of the identifications are necessarily tentative - one or two of the `barnacle cyprids' might be ostracods (as the authors admit). Final sections are devoted to `unknown larvae', `fragments' and `miscellaneous zooplankton'. This volume is very much a glossy version of a field notebook and its value lies primarily in its usefulness to future workers in the maritime Antarctic. In total, 131 larval types were collected - an enormous increase over those known previously. The guide is soft-bound,
with good quality paper and drawings. Photographs are generally less
impressive, though some of the SEM figures are excellent. Unfortunately,
the market for such a guide must necessarily be extremely small -
its theoretical value is limited, while the number of people worldwide
who will need its practical utility is tiny. Few institutions will
buy it, while its price will inhibit private purchase. John Davenport, University Marine Biological Station, Millport,
Isle of Cumbrae, Scotland |
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