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The biology of sea turtles. Volume II
Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 294 (2003) 257 – 258 www.elsevier.com/locate/jembe
Book review
The biology of sea turtles. Volume II Edited by Peter L. Lutz, John A. Musick and Jeanette Wyneken, CRC Press, Boca Raton, 2003, ISBN 0-8493-1123-3; 440 pp., USD 99.95 Volume II in this series on Sea Turtle Biology ‘‘emphasizes practical aspects of biology that relate to sea turtle management and changes in marine and coastal ecosystems’’. Overall, I found the book to be a mixed bag of papers on wide-ranging aspects of sea turtle biology, ecology, conservation and value to humans. Similar to its companion volume (I), the contributors are overwhelmingly drawn from North America (i.e., 22 out of 25), leading to a few chapters being geographically limited when the topic has information available from a much broader region. This is, in part, a consequence of the spatial concentration of sea turtle research emanating from the USA, but does not give due recognition to sea turtle research from other parts of the world, most notably from Central and Eastern Asia. Many of the contributors are well-published in the field of sea turtle research, but there are contributions by new researchers as well. The level of detail and discussion of the topic varies greatly between chapters. The chapters on sea turtle anatomy, sensory biology, reproductive cycles, ontogeny of gonads, health and disease and husbandry are extensive and provide detailed information. The chapters on adult migrations, life history patterns, population ecology and trawl-related mortality are more like summary reviews, providing a starting point for where to find further relevant literature. There are a number of papers that address human use (historic and contemporary), sea turtle conservation and the role of sea turtles within marine ecosystems, which present information that is not readily available elsewhere. The book lacks consistency on a number of fronts, which may be seen as pedantic details. These include: (i) the use, or lack thereof, of cross-referencing to other relevant chapters within the book; (ii) the format of the referencing system (i.e., numeric in one chapter, textual in all others); and (iii) the switching of use of the term ‘sea turtles’ and ‘marine turtles’, both within and between chapters. This, combined with the notable difference in level of detail of various chapters, leads to a feeling that the book is a compilation of papers by individuals (or groups of individuals where there are multiple authors), rather than a cohesive second volume on sea turtle biology. Despite some shortcomings, I would recommend the book to sea turtle biologists as a number of the chapters present unique and up-to-date reviews, drawing together information from peer-reviewed as well as grey literature. These chapters provide a useful starting point for new researchers or provide access points to useful grey literature for ‘‘old’’ researchers.
doi:10.1016/S0022-0981(03)00267-3
258
Book review
For the wider audience of students, ecologists, managers or ‘‘conservation enthusiasts’’, I would suggest that usefulness of chapters on a particular field of interest would need to be assessed on their individual merit. Julie Robins Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Southern Fisheries Centre, PO Box 76, Deception Bay 4508, Australia E-mail address: [email protected]
Book review
The biology of sea turtles. Volume II Edited by Peter L. Lutz, John A. Musick and Jeanette Wyneken, CRC Press, Boca Raton, 2003, ISBN 0-8493-1123-3; 440 pp., USD 99.95 Volume II in this series on Sea Turtle Biology ‘‘emphasizes practical aspects of biology that relate to sea turtle management and changes in marine and coastal ecosystems’’. Overall, I found the book to be a mixed bag of papers on wide-ranging aspects of sea turtle biology, ecology, conservation and value to humans. Similar to its companion volume (I), the contributors are overwhelmingly drawn from North America (i.e., 22 out of 25), leading to a few chapters being geographically limited when the topic has information available from a much broader region. This is, in part, a consequence of the spatial concentration of sea turtle research emanating from the USA, but does not give due recognition to sea turtle research from other parts of the world, most notably from Central and Eastern Asia. Many of the contributors are well-published in the field of sea turtle research, but there are contributions by new researchers as well. The level of detail and discussion of the topic varies greatly between chapters. The chapters on sea turtle anatomy, sensory biology, reproductive cycles, ontogeny of gonads, health and disease and husbandry are extensive and provide detailed information. The chapters on adult migrations, life history patterns, population ecology and trawl-related mortality are more like summary reviews, providing a starting point for where to find further relevant literature. There are a number of papers that address human use (historic and contemporary), sea turtle conservation and the role of sea turtles within marine ecosystems, which present information that is not readily available elsewhere. The book lacks consistency on a number of fronts, which may be seen as pedantic details. These include: (i) the use, or lack thereof, of cross-referencing to other relevant chapters within the book; (ii) the format of the referencing system (i.e., numeric in one chapter, textual in all others); and (iii) the switching of use of the term ‘sea turtles’ and ‘marine turtles’, both within and between chapters. This, combined with the notable difference in level of detail of various chapters, leads to a feeling that the book is a compilation of papers by individuals (or groups of individuals where there are multiple authors), rather than a cohesive second volume on sea turtle biology. Despite some shortcomings, I would recommend the book to sea turtle biologists as a number of the chapters present unique and up-to-date reviews, drawing together information from peer-reviewed as well as grey literature. These chapters provide a useful starting point for new researchers or provide access points to useful grey literature for ‘‘old’’ researchers.
doi:10.1016/S0022-0981(03)00267-3
258
Book review
For the wider audience of students, ecologists, managers or ‘‘conservation enthusiasts’’, I would suggest that usefulness of chapters on a particular field of interest would need to be assessed on their individual merit. Julie Robins Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Southern Fisheries Centre, PO Box 76, Deception Bay 4508, Australia E-mail address: [email protected]