The Catfish Connection (Biology and Resource Management Series) [Hardcover]

Ronaldo Barthem (Author), Michael Goulding (Author)

Book Description

Series: Biology and Resource Management Series | Publication Date: May 15, 1997

The Amazon Basin's rivers, estuaries and tributaries are home to as many as 1000 species of catfish. In this work, two scientists offer a natural history of the Amazon giant catfish and its central place as a source of food and income within the ecology and economy of the Amazon Basin. While focusing primarily on two species of giant catfish - known locally as Dourada and Piramutaba - the authors also present illustrated accounts of 13 distinct large fish. Their research yields strong statistical data and field observations that illustrate the catfishes' extensive migratory range and presents solid evidence of animal species requiring or using a large part of the basin for their ecological needs. This text also proposes techniques for the careful management of this resource to ensure its survival for future generations. This study should be a useful reference for marine and conservation biologists in the field, ecologists, resource management professionals and development workers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A ground-breaking analysis of the life history of the large catfishes of the Amazon basin. -- Richard P. Vari National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (May 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 023110832X
• ISBN-13: 978-0231108324
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,395,730 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a fascinating read, August 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Catfish Connection (Biology and Resource Management Series) (Hardcover)

This is a very slim book for the price, but it is packed with data and insight gained over years of research into the natural history of the large predatory catfish in the Amazon basin. This is frontier fisheries biology. Some of the discoveries revealed in this book say as much about the Amazon as it does about the fish themselves.

I would have preferred that they had eschewed the use of the local common names in favor of the scientific names as it can be confusing. For example when they refer to Sorubim, they don't mean Sorubim lima nor do they mean Sorubimichthys planiceps or even Hemisorubim platyrhynchus. They are referring to what American aquarists call the Tiger Shovelnose: Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum. There is a chapter covering the names and information about each fish to help out when such confusion arises. The chapter includes some great photographs of some of the largest specimens compared to the size of people, but it is unfortunate that all the photos are in black and white. It would have been particularly nice to have had color photos of the specimens of Merodontodus tigrinus and Brachyplatystoma juruense shown in the black and white photos.

One of the surprising revelations in this book is that while these catfish eat just about anything that moves, they seem to have a preference for Prochilodins. It seems that there are other very similar prey items (such as Leporinus spp.) that would serve just as well as Prochilodins.

This book would have been very helpful to me when I was majoring in fisheries biology and was primarily interested in aquaculture and viewing with disdain the put-and-take approach to fisheries required of the local government to maintain fishing sites for the "sportsmen". I'd have been much more interested in the wildlife aspect of the discipline if I'd had this book.

Overall this was an incredibly fascinating book for the little gems of knowledge that are revealed by the data that the authors collected.

5.0 out of 5 stars HIGHLY ACADEMIC, INTERESTING, August 4, 2008

By 

Denis Benchimol Minev "Amazonia" (Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

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This review is from: The Catfish Connection (Biology and Resource Management Series) (Hardcover)

This is an academic book about the accumulated scientific knowledge on the large Amazon catfishes. The book ranges from highly technical notes of how populations are surveyed to a list of all the different species in the region and their characteristics.

The very interesting fact is the migratory patterns of the different species along different rivers. The general pattern is to reproduce in headwaters, then they travel to the estuary region where they grow and then migrate back to headwaters to feed, grow more (ever larger, 200 pounds or more) and finally reproduce. The study reflects part of the concern over large hydroelectric dams that could interrupt this cycle.

I recommend this book for anyone interested in the finer aspects of Amazon conservation. Though academic, it is readable for the novice as well.