Customer Reviews

The Complete Illustrated Breeder's Guide to Marine Aquarium Fishes

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Whether you're a hobbyist, enthusiast, or entrepreneur of saltwater fish this book is necessary collection for your library. This book covers everything from setting up tanks properly, to choosing and spawning your broodstock and most importantly larval care. The secret steps of larval care and diet are described for 90+ species and accompanied with easy to follow fabulous photos. After reading through the steps in the book I was able to successfully, spawn and rear Neon Dottybacks to metamorphisis. A definite must!

Let me put it short and sweet - if you are considering the cutting edge of the aquarium hobby, you're talking Marine Fish Breeding, and this book will literally bring you up to speed on the last 40 years of marine ornamental fish breeding right up to 2007. Matthew Wittenrich continues to be on the cutting edge, having raised more than one new species since the publication of this all-encompassing review of hobbyist-level marine fish propagation. This book, covering over 50 successfully reared marine fish species, is enough to give the average hobbyist decades of "projects" to reattempt, as well as providing current insight into how future breakthroughs and acheivements might be reached. Easily worth 4-5 times the price you'll pay. Simply a book that will floor you.

Author Matt Wittenrich is gifted with the patience and rational powers of observation that enable him to capture the important details the need to be reproduced in order for the various species of marine fishes to reproduce themselves. Breeding marine fishes is obviously the author's life's work, and it is truly to his credit that he shares step-by-step instructions from his immense store of knowledge about these fishes that for so long had been considered impossible to breed in the home. Fantastic photography of larvae, breeding sequences, sexual dimorphism, equipment, and more.

This is such a fascinating subject; and the author clearly possesses a great deal of knowledge about it. However, it seemed like the book was rushed to printing without thorough editing.

There are typos and omissions throughout the book. The most annoying omission was the detailed protocol for breeding the Orchid Dottyback. For every species of Dottyback, and for other unrelated species, the author refers the reader to see the "detailed protocol of breeding P. fridmani" on page 186. This detailed protocol seems to be one of the most important sections in the book; and it isn't there. I read the book cover to cover and never found the "detailed protocol of breeding P. fridmani." Considering that this section is referred to so often and for so many species the omission of this section is either extremely sloppy editing or it was purposefully left out. Perhaps some of the commercial breeders associated with the author didn't want these details released...

The photos in the book are very good, and help to redeem the overall poor editing.

Matt Witterich's book `The Complete Illustrated Breeder's Guide to Marine Aquarium Fishes' is aptly titled. The book discusses comprehensively the details of marine ornamental captive culture, from broodstock rearing, breeding to larval rearing of up to 90+ species. This work distilled the author's decade-long experience in ornamental fish culture, making the hobby more accessible to beginners and adding new insights to the repertoire of professional hobbyist. The breadth, meticulous detail, scientific precision and excellent photography show the expertise and dedication of the author in the field of marine ornamental culture- not just as a hobbyist but as a scientific researcher in the field. While this book will undoubtedly become an indispensable `guidebook' for the hobbyist, I believe that the book will become very useful as a reference for colleges and universities teaching in ornamental fish culture and to researchers in the field. This book advances both the art and the science of ornamental fish culture!

The book is exceptional reference for the home breeder.

However it could have been a little more detailed in a few sections.

It is the best Marine Breeders reference I have came accross to date.

Complete, full of ideas, easy to read, well structured.
Great book, specially if you're starting at small or home-scale. It brings you from the general approach to a common and not so common marine species details. It covers jawfish, grammas, bettas, gobies, blennies, cardinals, dottybacks and many more... even pelagic spawners, providing insight into how future acheivements might be reached. The book is very useful as a reference for hobbyists, but also for researchers in the field. This book is a must.

Marine husbandry was once considered impossible but the last 40 years has proven this wrong. I found it difficult to get good information on this subject and I'm very glad I bought this book. Even if you don't plan to breed fish, it is amazing to read about (and see in the beautiful pictures) the breeding habits of some fish. For example, if you had 100+ babies, how long would you keep them in your mouth for? A great buy.

Great breeding book, It's complete, easy to read, with nice pictures and drawings. I love the Genus section who display a specie specific caracteristi for breeding easy al aquarium fish.

As a breeder of clownfish in the past, I'm always interested in what progress is being made in breeding marine ornimentals. Those of like mind may wonder, as I do, why more captive bred exotics arent offered in the trade. I've heard pygmy angels are being bred, why aren't I seeing many in the shops and internet dealers? When I do see them, why are they so expensive, do they not disperse thousands of eggs when they spawn? Can I succeed in bringing a new tank raised species through metamorphosis? Are successful breeders of newly reared species sharing their secrets? Is it worth trying to breed something new without a huge bankroll?

Some of these questions are answered, some not. There is little doubt, however, that anyone interested in the subject would be glad that they picked up this book. The concepts described in the text are clarified with very good photography, and it offers a new perspective on a lot of things that anyone who has ever tinkered with this sort of thing would be interested in.