Recent decades have witnessed strong declines in fish stocks around the globe, amid growing concerns about the impact of fisheries on marine and freshwater biodiversity. Fisheries biologists and managers are therefore increasingly asking about aspects of ecology, behaviour, evolution and biodiversity that were traditionally studied by people working in very separate fields. This has highlighted the need to work more closely together, in order to help ensure future success both in management and conservation.

TheHandbook of Fish Biology and Fisheries has been written by an international team of scientists and practitioners, to provide an overview of the biology of freshwater and marine fish species together with the science that supports fisheries management and conservation.

This volume, subtitledFish Biology, reviews a broad variety of topics from evolutionary relationships and global biogeography to physiology, recruitment, life histories, genetics, foraging behaviour, reproductive behaviour and community ecology. The second volume, subtitledFisheries, uses much of this information in a wide-ranging review of fisheries biology, including methods of capture, marketing, economics, stock assessment, forecasting, ecosystem impacts and conservation.

Together, these books present the state of the art in our understanding of fish biology and fisheries and will serve as valuable references for undergraduates and graduates looking for a comprehensive source on a wide variety of topics in fisheries science. They will also be useful to researchers who need up-to-date reviews of topics that impinge on their fields, and decision makers who need to appreciate the scientific background for management and conservation of aquatic ecosystems.

To order volume I, go to the box in the top right hand corner. Alternatively to order volume II, go to: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/book.asp?ref=063206482X or to order the 2 volume set, go to: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/book.asp?ref=0632064838.

Provides a unique overview of the study of fish biology and ecology, and the assessment and management of fish populations and ecosystems.The first volume concentrates on aspects of fish biology and ecology, both at the individual and population levels, whilst the second volume addresses the assessment and management of fish populations and ecosystems.Written by an international team of expert scientists and practitioners.An invaluable reference tool for both students, researchers and practitioners working in the fields of fish biology and fisheries.

Paul J. B. Hart is a Reader in the Department of Biology, University of Leicester, UK. His research focuses on the role of trophic ecology and competition in fish speciation and on the management of commercial marine fisheries. His publications include a co-authored textbookFisheries Ecology (1982) and he has co-editedThe Impact of Species Changes in African Lakes (1995) andReinventing Fisheries Management (1998). He is co-editor of the review journal,Fish and Fisheries (Blackwell Science) and he is a past President of the Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

John D. Reynolds is a Professor of Evolutionary Ecology at the University of East Anglia, UK. His research examines the evolution of reproductive behaviour and life histories, with an emphasis on conservation of marine and freshwater fishes. He has co-authored a textbook,Marine Fisheries Ecology (2001), has co-editedConservation of Exploited Species (2001) and is co-editor of the journal,Animal Conservation. He was awarded the FSBI medal of the Fisheries Society of the British Isles in 2000.

1. Banishing Ignorance: Underpinning Fisheries with Basic Biology (P. J. B. Hart and J. D. Reynolds).

2. Phylogeny and Systematics of Fishes (A. C. Gill and R.D. Mooi).

3. Historical Biogeography of Fishes (R. D. Mooi and A. C. Gill).

4. The Physiology of Living in Water (O. Brix).

5. Environmental Factors and Rates of Development and Growth (M. Jobling).

6. Recruitment: Understanding Density-dependence in Fish Populations (R. A. Myers).

7. Life Histories of Fish (J. A. Hutchings).

8. Migration (J. Metcalfe, G. Arnold and R. McDowall).

9. Genetics of Fish Populations (R. D. Ward).

10. Behavioural Ecology of Reproduction in Fish (E. Forsgren, J. D. Reynolds and A. Berglund).

11. Fish Foraging and Habitat Choice: A Theoretical Perspective (G. G. Mittelbach).

12. Feeding Ecology of Piscivorous Fishes (F. Juanes, J. A. Buckel and F. S. Scharf).

13. Fish as Prey (J. Krause, E. M. A. Hensor and G. D. Ruxton).

14. Trophic Ecology and the Structure of Marine Food Webs (N. V.C. Polunin and J.K. Pinnegar).

15. Community Ecology of Freshwater Fishes (L. Persson).

16. Comparative Ecology of Marine Fish Communities (K. Martha M. Jones, D. G. Fitzgerald and P. F. Sale).

17. Interactions Between Fish, Parasites and Disease (I. Barber and R. Poulin)