294 BULLETIN OF MARINE SCIENCE, VOL. 57, NO. I, 1995 BULLETIN OF MARINE SCIENCE, 57(1): 294, 1995 MARINEMAMMALSOF THEWORLD.Thomas A. Jefferson, Stephen Leatherwood and Marc A. Webber. 1993. FAO Species Identification Guide. Rome. 320 pp. US $42.00. This is another in the fine series of guides and catalogs being produced by FAG, The introduction consists of a brief account of marine mammal classification with shorter accounts of oceanography and marine mammal distribution, marine mammal identification and how to use the guide, FAG species codes used in the guide, anatomical descriptions with key characters of the body and skull and a glossary of identification characters. The main parts of the book comprise keys to the taxa and species accounts. The keys are well illustrated though the key to cetaceans (whales and porpoises) is extremely long (68 couplets) and of limited value unless you had a preserved specimen to examine in detail. The key to the seals is also long (33 couplets). With speciose taxa I believe that the practicality of a long key is diminished and should be divided to well recognized higher taxa to avoid getting confused and lost. The key to the skulls of cetacean families is much easier to follow and comprehend with 12 couplets. The species accounts are excellent with illustrations of the whole animal, skull and jaws and, for the whales, outlines of tails, backs, and spouts. Each account provides a description of diagnostic morphological characters, species that can be confused with it, size, geographical distribution (including charts), biology and behavior, exploitation, and IUCN status. Despite the title, the four freshwater dolphins, one freshwater manatee, and two inland seals are given equal treatment. The two sea otters and the polar bear are also treated. The book concludes with a list all species and the FAG regional fishing areas within which they occur, a brief literature list, and an index.-W. J. Richards, Editor. BULLETIN OF MARINE SCIENCE, 57(1): 294-295, 1995 FISHESOF THEWORLD.Joseph S. Nelson. 1994. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. New York. 3rd Edition. 600 pp. $72.50 cloth. This third edition represents a thorough revision of previous editions. Recent literature is taken into account including some major papers which appeared in 1994. The book consists of a short introduction which discusses number of taxa and numbers of species in these taxa, importance to people, biological diversity, habitat diversity, morphological diversity, classification and systematics, and fi- nally, distribution and biogeography. These are complex subjects in themselves and are lightly treated in 17 pages. This is not a criticism as the goal of the book is to give accounts of all the taxa to family level with lists of most currently recognized genera and number of species. This goal is well done thus yielding an excellent reference book for ichthyologists, zoologists and biologists. There is a complete index, literature cited, and the inside cover has an outline classification to the order level and there is an appendix with numbered lists of all extant taxa to the family level, but the text treats fossil taxa as well. The individual taxa accounts are short synopses which provide diagnostic an- atomical characters, key features (usually habits or habitat), distribution (including geological age for extinct forms), genera and number of species plus references.