128 THE QUARTERLY REVIEW OF BIOLOGY Volume 83

The Silent Deep: The Discovery, Ecology and Wave-Swept Shore: The Rigors of Life on a Conservation of the Deep Sea. Rocky Coast. By Tony Koslow. Chicago (Illinois): University of Chi- By Mimi Koehl; photographs by Anne Wertheim cago Press. $35.00. vi ϩ 270 p ϩ 16 pl; ill.; index. Rosenfeld. Berkeley (California): University of Califor- ISBN: 0-226-45125-9. 2007. nia Press. $39.95. xii ϩ 179 p; ill.; index. ISBN: When I first saw this coffee-table style volume, 0-520-23812-5. 2006. my immediate thought was how will it add to This volume presents an excellent introduction to Gage and Tyler’s excellent textbook, Deep-Sea the natural history and biology of the shore for non- Biology: A Natural History of Organisms at the Deep- specialists. For many, a visit to the shore is a pleasant Sea Floor (1991. Cambridge: Cambridge Univer- escape or a favorite holiday. This book will encour- sity Press)? The answer is manifold. First, the age readers to look at the shore and the organisms it gorgeous photographs and line drawings of harbors with a new eye. Marine shores are one of the most physically rigorous environments, and one that deep-sea organisms and exploration give it has provided a rich model system for studies of ecol- broad appeal. The text is deceptive, in that it is ogy, physiology, and biomechanics. written in a way that nonspecialists can follow As is indicated in Chapter 1, this is a book of “how” and enjoy, but it is also extremely detailed and organisms survive and thrive on the shore, which is scholarly in its thoroughness. This trick is achieved explained by morphology, mechanics, and biophys- by using a narrative style and numbered references ics, rather than “why” questions, which are the es- that allow the flow of the text so that readers do sences of ecology and evolution. Chapter 2 focuses not realize that Koslow has summarized a very on water, its power both in terms of physical forces, large number of key studies for them in his de- but also in terms of the essential need for the pres- tailed history of the exploration, study, and utili- ence (or absence) of water for life on the shore. zation of deep-sea environments. Chapter 3 deals with waves, boundary layers, and the The enthusiasm of the author for deep-sea ecosys- nonintuitive way in which water moves and works. tems shines through with personal thoughts and an- For many, it will be surprising to learn that even on ecdotes that most of us expunge from our terse and the most wave-swept shore, there are places where often dry writing. Not so here! Koslow presents a organisms are protected from the forces of moving compelling story that begins with a section on water, and the extreme differences in flow seen by early exploration through the Challenger Expedi- organisms over very short distances allow much of tion, then moves through scientific progress in the rich diversity found there. Chapter 4 moves to deep-sea ecology over the last century, and ends the properties of organisms faced with the rigors of with a compelling and passionate section on very shore life. It also illustrates that organisms have disturbing human impacts. Because this organiza- found many different types of solutions to these tion scheme follows the historical sequence, it problems enhancing the diversity we see. This chap- works extremely well and makes it very “untext- ter also does a superb job of explaining important book” in form. The author is unique among deep- concepts in mechanics (such as stress, strain, and sea biologists in that he comes to the field from a fracture) and how both the material and structural background in fisheries science, and is therefore properties of organisms affect their responses. Chap- also able to bring a management and policy per- ter 5 concerns the large-scale movement and mixing of water. Although moving water is a physical chal- spective to the problem that few others could. The lenge for organisms, for many (especially those that text is a real joy to read, and because it focuses on are sessile), it is also essential for the delivery of food a subset of deep-sea issues—namely exploration, and nutrients and the dispersal of offspring. Chapter ecology, and conservation—it actually comple- 6 takes us to the shore in the absence of water— ments the Gage and Tyler volume very well. The when the tide is low or the fringing areas are high on current book is scholarly in offering new insights the shore, and the ways organisms cope with heat to specialists, but it is meant to be read by nonsci- and desiccation. The only constant in the shore en- entists who are interested in learning something vironment is change, which is covered in Chapter 7. about the largest habitat on . Koslow is to be Here, the author deals with both physical and bio- commended for providing an important textbook logical changes that occur from short time scales and viewpoint that is highly recommended for (such as waves washing in and out) to long time anyone with a professional or personal interest in scales (such as seasons) and how the timing of life deep-sea ecosystems. matches these changes. Paul Snelgrove, Ocean Sciences Centre, Memorial Each of the eight chapters is complimented by University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, Newfound- excellent illustrations and many beautiful photo- land, Canada graphs of common animals and plants, as well as March 2008 NEW BIOLOGICAL BOOKS 129 scenes that illustrate concepts. The photographs Although the book concentrates on terrestrial spe- alone make the book one that many readers will cies, the blithe and breezy accounts of coral reefs, want in their home. The author also provides useful fishes, sharks, turtles, and manatees are perhaps footnotes with definitions and references for addi- even more flagrantly idealized. The author ignores tional readings for anyone who wants to know more. the tragic losses of habitats and populations to over- In a time when public scientific literacy is low, this fishing, habitat loss, and coral diseases that have volume provides an excellent and visually appealing raised alarms and international calls for action. The entre´e into this wonderful world. The audience for term “shifting baseline syndrome,” coined to de- this book includes educated nonexperts, and it scribe the perception of decline in fisheries, comes should be especially appealing to anyone who lives to mind (see D Pauly. 1995. Trends in Ecology and close to or regularly visits the shore. I think this Evolution 10(10):430). Until we recognize what we would also make an excellent textbook in a science have lost, we cannot influence the public, set goals, course for nonmajors. The appeal of the photo- and implement governance policies that might allow graphs combined with the approachable prose and humans to live sustainably with what is left of the excellent deciphering of science and engineering natural patrimony of the planet. into intuitive and easy to relate to concepts will help Acknowledging its high production values, ex- demystify science for many nonexperts, and may in- cellent illustrations, and scientifically informed spire students to want to learn more about biology, text, Wild Caribbean reads, perhaps not unexpect- biomechanics, and the natural world. edly, like an ecotourism development department Dianna K Padilla, Ecology & Evolution, Stony brochure. For an old Caribbean hand, it is a sad, Brook University, Stony Brook, New York nostalgic trip through the “paradise” that once was and may never be again. Wild Caribbean: The Hidden Wonders of the John C Ogden, Biology and Florida Institute of World’s Most Famous Islands. Oceanography, University of South Florida, St. Peters- By Michael Bright. New Haven (Connecticut): Yale burg, Florida University Press. $25.00 (paper). 224 p; ill.; index. ISBN: 978-0-300-12549-8. 2007. Saving Puget Sound: A Conservation Strat- This is a well-written, idyllic, armchair voyage of ex- egy for the 21st Century. ploration of the biological diversity of the islands of By John Lombard. Published by American Fisheries the . A companion volume to a four- Society, Bethesda (Maryland), in association with part television series produced for the Travel Chan- University of Washington Press, Seattle (Washing- nel, the book is laden with color photographs and ton). $35.00 (paper). xvii ϩ 336 p; ill.; index. accurate, detailed accounts of the natural history of ISBN: 0-295-98674-3. 2006. many of the enormous variety of organisms that in- This is an ambitious volume that wrestles with a habit one of the world’s hotspots of biological diver- key challenge facing modern North American so- sity. For a popular work, I particularly liked the geo- ciety: How do we conserve natural ecosystem func- logical context and human historical accounts that tions in a human-altered landscape? Like other help explain the evolutionary development and con- books of this genre, Lombard argues for major temporary distribution of this diversity. changes to the management regimes currently in It is, however, painful for me to read this book place and a fundamental reevaluation of societal from my perspective of over four decades of travel values and economic decision-making. He con- and biological research in the region. The greater cludes that urban environments, as presently con- Caribbean washes the shores of over 35 nations— figured, are essentially lost from a conservation from among the poorest to the richest in the perspective. The author condemns urban sprawl world—with perhaps 200 million people. The is- within the Puget Sound region, and argues that land and mainland areas have suffered from all of conservation priority should be given to those nat- the insults of a relentlessly expanding human pop- ural areas that contribute most to the ecosystem ulation: deforestation; rampant development; pol- services of a region. His analysis is multidisci- lution; overexploitation; and alarming social and plinary and focuses on the legislative, regulatory, economic problems, to name but a few. On too and judicial context for the current state of Puget many pages I was confronted by a brilliant photo- Sound’s endangered salmon runs, water quality, graph of a reptile, bird, or mammal and the unre- and growth management. His review of the history quited expectation that the text would discuss the and current application (or misapplication!) of alarming trend of decline or threatened or endan- Washington State’s Growth Management Act is gered status of that particular species. For exam- particularly insightful. ple, the ivory-billed woodpecker, unseen in This book is, however, not without its shortcom- since at least 1986, is miraculously brought to life. ings. For example, is frequently