Whelks to Whales: Coastal Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest

by Rick M. Harbo

Book Overview

Newly revised and updated in 2010 with additional photographs and up-to-date names, this full-colour field guide to the marine life of coastal British Columbia, Alaska, Washington, Oregon and northern California is perfect for divers, boaters and beachcombers. It is a ready reference to more than 400 of the most common species, the fascinating local sponges, jellyfish, crabs, shrimp, barnacles, clams, snails, seals, fish, whales, sea algae and hundreds...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1550174916
• ISBN13: 9781550174915
• Release Date: March 2011
• Publisher: Harbour Publishing
• Length: 328 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Great but not a "one stop" book

This is a great book, but it isn't as complete as I would have liked. The photographs are good and you can identify quite a bit, but not everything. It is a good starting point book though because there are numerous subsections.

Excellent for Seattle

Easy to use guide, great for identifying most things by sight. Occasionally pictures could be a little misleading, but holds together in general.

Excellent all purpose criter ID book with photos

This book has been very helpful in identifing the many different creatures I have seen while diving in Washinton State's Puget Sound as well as around Vancouver Island. It is perfect for any recreational diver because while it does list Phylum and Species, it also gives the commom name and even alternate common names if applicable. Each entry also gives the Size, Range, Habitat, Description and a brief comment about the entry. The photos are clear and sometimes include photos of the fishes egg mass. This book covers the most common of the marine life that you are likely to encounter while diving in the Pacific Northwest. I take it with me when I go diving and use it after the dive to show what I saw and for others to identify what they saw. It also helps me at home latter when I want to put a name to a photo I took while diving. I whole heartedly recommend this book to anyone slightly curious as to what that thing is called they saw on that last dive.

A Park Ranger-Naturalist's comments

This book's easy-to-use key immediately helps visitors to Olympic's coast identify dozens and dozens of marine animals and plants. We bring it on ranger-led tide pool explorations because it complements our journeys so well. Each section provides structural, behavioral, and habitat information about the type of creatures. Then, many individual species are photographed and described, including known life cycles, predator-prey relationships, and other unique aspects. The book is particularly good because it includes several marine mammals, enhancing tide pool exploration with ocean discovery. This is a wonderful aid in introducing visitors to the intertidal zone, the marine sanctuary, and the abundant life thriving within.

Excellent source for scuba divers around the Pacific NW

This book is a must for any scuba diver venturing into the waters of Puget Sound, coastal British Columbia and Vancouver Island. It was a great resource during a recent 4 day diving trip to Barkley Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island. It provided us with hours of conversation about what we had seen and what to look for next.