Coastal Fish Identification: California to Alaska Paperback – Illustrated, September 30, 2008

The book updated my knowledge.

This is a great addition for anyone who is interested in fish i d. I live in San Diego and it is immensely useful.

This book is for the most common fish that will be encountered along the West Coast of North America, and as such does not cover those that only spend a portion of their life in the marine environment, or those found so deep as to be available to ichthyologists only. I find this a great field guide for divers or snorkelers looking to identify fish, as well as learn a little bit about their life history. Also makes a good companion for fishing or trawling, when you're trying to decide which of many, many species of rockfish you have.

This book continues the strong tradition of field guides produced by Human and DeLoach. If you've used any of their other guides before, you can rest assured that this continues the clear, informative format they've developed over the years. The first flaw that I've come across, however, isn't a problem with what's covered but what's not covered: Salmon.This field guide is aimed towards scuba divers, so I assume the authors made an editorial choice to focus on the fish likely to be seen by divers. However, if that's the case, then they should have mentioned in their introduction how they decided what to include and what to exclude. Even if the authors think divers are unlikely to focus much on salmon, I think the authors made an incorrect choice to exclude from this book one of the most characteristic groups of fish in this area.

The information is pretty standard field guide fair, but clear and concise. Also has a section in each species account devoted to reaction to divers. I'm not sure I agree with this part completely (I dive in Southern California, San Diego county) but it seems generally correct from my personal encounters.This book's pictures make it worth the price though. They are excellent shots that make the fish very easy to ID. This is especially invaluable with the rockfish (Sebastes sp.) which are confusing at the best of times.

This is the book you want to have for identifying West Coast fishes. It's not comprehensive, but it does show the fish one is likely to see. Its selectivity makes it easier to use than a more encyclopedic volume would be.

best way to settle disputes! provides additional info like some fish change colors with aging, where you're likely to find species, etc.

Nice book. Different sages of the fish (Juvenal, color variations etc.

Delivery faster than promied :-) Book as great as expected, just like all the other books in the collection by De Loach and Humann.