A wealth of information on seagrass

Green, E.P. & Short, F.T. (eds) (2004) World atlas of seagrass. University of California Press, Berkeley, USA in association with UNEP-WCMC. xii +298 pp., figs, tables, maps, line diagrams, colour plates, index. Hardback: price £39.95, US$60.00, ISBN 0 520 24047 2. The World atlas of seagrass makes an excellent addition to the growing volume of seagrass books published in recent years. With these recent books focusing on topics such as research methods (Short & Coles, 2001), management (Butler & Jernakoff, 1999) and ecology (Hemminga & Duarte, 2000) there has been a growing niche for a book that provides a comprehensive global synthesis of seagrass distribution and status. The World atlas of seagrass fills this niche successfully, and in so doing is likely to become a valuable resource to scientists, coastal managers, conservationists and students alike. For the challenging task of summarizing seagrasses in over 180 countries and territories the book relies on an international collaborative approach, with contributions from over 50 authors from approximately 25 nations. Such collaborative approaches can often result in a disjointed and poorly flowing text; this book largely avoided this pitfall, maintaining uniformity in style and presentation between chapters. The book is presented in two sections, a comparatively short global overview chapter followed by 24 regional chapters. The global overview section provides some useful synthesis tables and figures, including maps of global seagrass distribution and biodiversity. Readers are encouraged to visit an associated website for an interactive world seagrass distribution map: assuming that the web map is kept up to date, the combination of a static book and an associated dynamic and updateable website is an effective approach. Other contents of the global overview section — for example, the value of seagrass and threats to seagrasses — have been covered more comprehensively in the general seagrass literature and do not contribute additional insights into the topics. The majority of the book is dedicated to the 24 regional chapters, with each chapter covering a specific geographical area of the world. The collaborative approach has resulted in each chapter being written by experts with first-hand knowledge and experience of the region; each chapter also seems to be well researched. This first-hand experience is evident in the case studies that complement most chapters; some case studies provide very entertaining anecdotes: for example, the ceremonial consumption of Zostera marina by Vancouver Island First Nation communities. While the editors have made an excellent work of providing consistency between chapters, formatting of content between chapters does vary, interrupting continuity and detracting from the usefulness as a reference book. For example, some chapters follow topical headings (threat, policy, etc.), others follow a geographical format (location by location). Either way, each chapter attempts to cover key topics such as biogeography, historical perspectives and threats. Emphasis placed on the different topics does vary from chapter to chapter; presumably this reflects differences in available information. Each chapter also starts with a detailed seagrass distribution map. As with the overview maps, more confidence in the maps could be gained if they depicted areas that have no information available; as published, it is not possible to distinguish between the absence of seagrass and the absence of information The book also has a comprehensive appendix containing distribution maps for each seagrass species. These maps are well presented and will be a valuable resource to have at your fingertips. One of the more enjoyable aspects of reading this book was learning about seagrasses in some lesser-known or obscure regions of the world. For example, a chapter is dedicated to the Black, Azov, Caspian and Aral Seas. With the bulk of seagrass literature arising from relatively few geographical locations, reading about some of the lesser-known regions of the world was very refreshing. The book follows a large, ‘coffee-table’-style format; it is replete with maps, figures, tables and photographs, all of which are of high quality and consistency. The majority of the book is in two-tone (green and black), but more colours are used for some maps and photographs. There is a detailed index and contents page aiding the book's use. Overall, the book contains a wealth of information on the seagrasses of the world. The book is well presented, easy to read and well researched. The maps, tables and figures have been chosen carefully and well produced. As a result, this book will prove to be a valuable source of information on global and regional seagrass distribution and status.

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