The Reef Aquarium, Vol. 2: A Comprehensive Guide to the Identification and Care of Tropical Marine Invertebrates [Hardcover]

J. Charles Delbeek (Author), Julian Sprung (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 1997

This second volume in the series features the anemones and soft corals associated with reefs, detailing their biology and husbandry requirements, and featuring numerous species descriptions, with the benefit of wonderful color photographs. Also featured is new information regarding parasites in reef aquariums, and captive culture of anemones and soft corals. The book finishes with another section featuring more stunning images of reef aquariums around the world.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 546 pages
• Publisher: Ricordea Publishing; 1 edition (June 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883693136
• ISBN-13: 978-1883693138
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #332,353 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #12 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Field Guides > Fish

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Vol 2 is good, Vol 1 is better?, March 26, 2001

By 

Jay G Thompson (Gilbert, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Reef Aquarium, Vol. 2: A Comprehensive Guide to the Identification and Care of Tropical Marine Invertebrates (Hardcover)

As a beginning reef aquarist (but not at all new to the hobby), I ordered Volume 2 of this series because that's the volume that contains information on soft corals--which was what I wanted to start with. But I was also looking for other, "introductory" type information on reef keeping.

What I found in Volume 2 was a complete wealth of information on the soft corals (as well as anemones, and other inverts). When I looked for the more introductory information, what I found were several references to Volume 1 of the series. At first, I found this quite irritating, as it seemed that for the price (and based on the publisher reviews) that I should also get the intro material.

When I stopped and thought about it though, it made more sense. Imagine the irritation if I had bought Volume 1, only to have much of that information repeated in Volume 2. Volume 1 is now on order, and I'm sure that if it is half as well written and informative as Volume 2 was, then between the two works, I'll have all the answers I need to continue my exploration of this fascinating hobby.

Buy Volume 2 if there's anything you need to know about soft corals. It is well written, well researched, and well documented. My copy had none of the "fuzzy" pictures mentioned by some. The language is a bit technical, but the glossary is *outstanding* and almost worth the price of the book! Buy Volume 1 for reef system and setup, and information on hard corals. Better yet, buy them both for a complete reference set. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth it's weight in corals, January 14, 2000

By 

"xtreemdavec" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Reef Aquarium, Vol. 2: A Comprehensive Guide to the Identification and Care of Tropical Marine Invertebrates (Hardcover)

This book is great for what you're supposed to be reading it for.It tells the important facts about most non-scleractinian corals,which include requirements for general placement in the aquarium ,lighting needs,water flow,feeding requirements,if any at all,aggresiveness,and what the animal should look like.It is very informative on keeping ,and requirements of sea anemones.It all so dives into equipment and husbandry of a marine habitat. This book and the Vol#1 book are two great volumes to have, if you have,or are planning to start a tropical reef aquarium.

37 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book, too much hype!, December 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Reef Aquarium, Vol. 2: A Comprehensive Guide to the Identification and Care of Tropical Marine Invertebrates (Hardcover)

Volume 1's better. This book is all about Soft Corals. Irrelevant to non soft coral keepers. Covers too many species, resulting in brief coverage of most species. Good to skim through for reference, bad for indepth study. Pictures are sometimes fuzzy. Price too steep for such a book that makes me feel as though I am reading a magazine.