Customer Reviews

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

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

Delbeek and Sprung have not only given us valuable information on the classification of coral reef inhabitants, they have done it in an easy-to-understand format which is useful on the most basic level. Whether you are a beginner or expert, Vol. II is a definate worth-while read!

This volume of the series covers the soft corals and sea anemones; very important topics indeed for reef aquarium. The two books together are still not complete as  there are many organisms found in a reef aquaria still not covered. In this series. A fine glossary accompanies this book. Much of what I had to gleen by trial and error and by reading arcane publications over the years is covered in this book. Approachable to the beginner yet  a lot of substance for the expert.

This book goes indepth about the anatomy and physiology of mushrooms, soft corals and anemones. Not a great reference guide for choosing specimens for your It tends to generalize by family and/or genus vs species. If you are new to saltwater and are looking for a reference to choose items for your tank this would not be my first choice.

If you have any interest in keeping soft corals or mushrooms, this is the book you need. This coupled with Vol 1, is it for soft and stony coral care, propagation and tank setups. Only thing missing is talk on the fish and mobile inverts (aside from a few things) to go with this system. Great idea for Vol 3!

Hi,

The Best book of Marine invertebrates. The chapter about Anemones is very good and detailed. Although this book has been written in 1997 it's very current. Sometimes you will find references to volume 1 of the series and if you don't have Vol 1 some things can be more difficult to understand.

Nowadays, the pictures could be best but this is not a problem for this excellent book.

I strongly recommend.

This series is well worth every penny. You can find a lot of books for less but that is what you are getting. Save yourself some money and get the series that thoroughly do cover every aspect of the hobby in amazing detail. This series is amazing and you will love it. It is a bit scientific but it does not leave anything out.

They should have named this "The Reef Aquarium Bible, Book II!" Current information from an author who knows a thing or two about keeping these corals alive. Not to turn this into an affirmation workshop for Julian, but I really wish he had more time to write. This hobby needs more books like this.