Sharks and Rays: Elasmobranch Guide of the World – R. M. Hennemann
Tony brought this book with him into our relationship and shared bookshelf, and it’s fitted in just fine. It doesn’t have the same number of scientific heavyweights behind it that the similar guide Sharks of the World does, but this is a perfectly accessible guide to the major shark and ray species for the travelling diver.
Part of Shark and Rays is a straightforward identification guide, with species photographs, distribution, habitat, diet and reproductive information, and details of any harmful interactions with humans that the shark has been implicated in. Since the photos are almost uniformly of excellent quality, this part of the book functions well and is perhaps easier to use (by virtue of the fact that it does not attempt to cover every single shark species) that Sharks of the World is.
What we really enjoy about this book, though, is the over thirty “picture stories” interspersed throughout the guide. Lavishly photographed, these extra stories cover particular species of sharks, characteristic behaviours, special ocean habitats, and other particularly interesting topics The author, Ralf M. Henneman, commissioned various elasmobranch experts, photographers and others who know sharks well in some or other capacity to write these stories. They move the book from an ordinary guide to a more personal account of sharks, their habits, the threats facing them, and where they can be seen by humans.
You can buy the book here.
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