Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises

by Richard J. Harrison

Book Overview

This illustrated book's subject ranges from whale watching and conservation, whale anatomy and social behaviour, to an examination of the history of commercial whaling. The text is accompanied by... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0816019770
• ISBN13: 9780816019779
• Release Date: January 1988
• Publisher: Facts on File
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 9.8" x 12.6"

Customer Reviews

Outstanding field guide

This book is extremely useful to both the general reader and to those with a serious interest in cetaceans. The book is well organized for quick reference and beautifully illustrated to aid in species identification in the field. Cetaceans are grouped by family and unique characteristics are clearly defined and illustrated. In addition the book is lightweight and easily carried on a boat trip. Highly recommended.

The Ultimate Cetacean Field Guide!

This book clearly deserves more than five stars for the great joy it will make available to you in the future by encouraging you to do more cetacean watching.One of my pleasures is planning and taking trips to the various whale, dolphin, and porpoise rich areas in the world. When there, I spend as much time as possible on the water enjoying the views. I was particularly delighted to see that this book opens the doors to locales that I did not know about. As a result, I now have three times as many places to visit as I thought I did. Having seen the unusual species that I have missed, I now see the world much differently. That's a great gift to receive from a field guide. Most people are unaware of the fascinating and beautiful mammal life in the oceans and rivers (yes, some dolphins live in rivers) around them. Although I live near one of the world's best cetacean watching areas, I would estimate that fewer than five percent of the people I meet have ever gone to observe the wonderful sights that are just a few minutes offshore. This guide can help change all that. With a heightened sense of our aquatic co-species, I think that all people will have more respect for them and interest in preserving their habitats and populations.Many people have a chance to go boating on the ocean, and see something that interests them. What is it? How should they approach it? I hope that all ocean-going boaters will buy a copy of this book to address those questions.This is a beautiful book to hold and behold. The drawings are luscious in their subtlety of color and shape. As a way to identify cetaceans, I cannot imagine a handbook that could be any better. The book is filled with dozens of clues for each type from length, shape, coloration, presence of typical parasites, behavior, breathing patterns, and other physical characteristics (like the shape of the teeth or baleen, blowholes, tails, heads, etc.). With so many observational points to consider, it would be very unusual to make a mistake. So the casual cetacean watcher can quickly be able to perform like an expert. After you have finished enjoying this wonderful book, I suggest that you plan your next trip to watch cetaceans. If possible, I suggest going to some location that you have never been to before. Even if formal party boats are not available there, you can go out in the least expensive way and rely on your handbook to guide you into a better understanding of what you are seeing.Appreciate the natural grandeur and beauty of the cetaceans . . . always!

Best Field Guide for Cetaceans I Have Seen

I lead about a dozen pelagic (offshore) birding boat trips each year off the east coast of the U.S. In the process, I became very interested in identifying the whales and dolphins we were seeing. As a result, I needed to find a decent field guide.This book is the best field guide to cetaceans that I've seen yet. It does an excellent job of presenting known identification criteria as well as pitfalls. The pictures, measurements, and dive sequences provide a quick reference. The more in-depth text provides the further details needed to confirm an ID or sometimes to explain why your view of a specific animal keeps you from making a positive ID. This is the one cetacean field guide I recommend to trip participants.

If you like whales, you'll like this book

If you want detailed information on whales, dolphins and porpoises layed out in a consistant, logical way with beautifully drawn, color images, this is the book for you.Some of the detailed information includes maps of where the animals typically range, a profile of their dive sequences for whale watchers and a comparison profile against a 6ft tall man. This is for each and every animal in the book and only part of the information included.This is a real gift to whale lovers and whale watchers everywhere. I can't really see anyone being dissapointed in a purchase of this book.

Great book!

If you want to know anything about whales, dolphins or even porpoises get this book. It has all the information from an ID Checklist (to ID the animals in the wild) to information about it's diet. YOu can find anything in this book. Great for anyone!