3 comments about Creating a Natural Aquarium (Onterpet Handbooks).

1. This is a good book for aquarium biotopes beginners, worhthy the price, have lots of images, good ideas that may help you at the time you mount a tank. On the other hand, this book has many errors on the right location of some plants, for example anubias in an "Amazon Acis Pool"?, i don?t think so, so if mistakes like this don?t bother you then this book is a good low price choice. Conversely to the plants mistakes, i found several ideas about "fishing bitopes", a very accurate research on fishes on differents areas. Good book for the price.



2. I'm going to start off by saying that this book is basically an older version of "Aquarium Designs Inspired by Nature", by the same author. This being said I'm going to compare the two in this review.
   
   Both books are for anyone who has wanted to turn their aquarium from a mix and match display to a strict biotope aquarium. They are divided in two parts, the first is a "practical section" that covers the water cycle, substrates and decoration, plants, water conditions and planning. Aquarium Designs Inspired by Nature (ADIBN) goes into some detail on the subjects but doesn't go as far as a textbook and make it boooooring. It is good information for aquarists of all levels. In the book, "Creating a Natural Aquarium" (CANA), the same information is covered in Part 1, but to a lesser degree and CANA omits some small sections. Part 1 of both books is really very similar and I wouldn't choose one based on the small differences. The important factor, in my opinion, the differences in part 2.
   
   Part 2 of ADIBN covers more biotopes than CANA, which I will list below. The biotopes that are in both books are virtually the same. I this list I will list the biotope sections and then which book it is in.
   
   Mountain Stream (CANA) split up in ADIBN
   *Chinese Mountain Stream (ADIBN)
   Central American Stream (BOTH)
   Central American River (BOTH)
   Australian River (BOTH)
   European River (BOTH)
   *European Lake (ADIBN)
   Flooded Forest (CANA) Same as Below
   Flooded Amazon Forest (ADIBN)
   Amazon Acid Pool (Both)
   *Downriver Amazon (ADIBN)
   *Congo Whitewater River (ADIBN)
   *West African Streambed (ADIBN)
   Lake Malawi (BOTH)
   Darkened Cave (BOTH)
   *Southeast Asian Stream (ADIBN)
   Southeast Asian Swamp (BOTH)
   *Indian River (ADIBN)
   Brackish Estuary (BOTH)
   Mangrove Swamp (BOTH)
   
   Personally I prefer Aquarium Designs Inspired by Nature because it includes a few extra biotypes and goes into a little more depth about each biotype. Aquarium Designs... is also a larger book so there are more pictures and they are larger. Aquarium Designs... uses the pictures from Creating a Natural Aquarium and adds a few. I like pictures, so this personal preference.
   
   CONCLUSION:
   If you want a little more detail and a few extra biotopes then go with AQUARIUM DESIGNS INSPIRED BY NATURE. If cost is a factor CREATING A NATURAL AQUARIUM is usually cheaper, or if you don't really care about the extra details left out CANA is equally as good as ADIBN. Both books are helpful in pointing you in the right direction and showing natural habitats. No matter which you pick you will be happy. (I Hope) These are the best books I have found (so far) that describe natural environments for the home aquarium. GOOD LUCK!



3. This is a wonderful book for anyone interested in Biotope tanks, or just a healthy habitat for your fish. It give in detail instructions and ideas, for biotopes from every part of the world, along with list of fish and plants for the tanks as well, its had many pictures to help you. and even goes into detail about kinda of substrates, filtration and other things. all the tanks in the book are built in 55gallon tanks, but can be made smaller. It even explains the different biotopes. if you having trouble finding info on any type of biotope this book is well worth the small investment, even with just one use it will pay for itself in the time you save. I very highly recommend this book to everyone, beginner or expert.

No comments about Fishes of the Caribbean Reefs (Caribbean Pocket Natural History Series).

No comments about Lake Victoria Basin Cichlids (Complete Pet Owner's Manual).

No comments about What Fish? A Buyer's Guide to Marine Fish: Essential Information to Help You Choose the Right Fish for Your Marine Aquarium (What Pet? Books).

No comments about Extremely Weird Fishes (Extremely Weird).

5 comments about The Marine Aquarium Handbook: Beginner to Breeder.

1. Never received the book. No emails and notice, no nothing!
   Very Disappointed.



2. This is an excellent book to use as background and reference for marine aquarium keeping. There are other books that cover species identification, and I would not buy this book for that purpose. You need this book to understand the principles of filtration systems, recognition and treatment of disease and all of the underlying knowledge that will allow you to be successful in maintaining a marine aquarium. It is in need of revision to cover more recent advances in reefkeeping, though.



3. Moe covers most of the parts of setting up a first-time marine aquarium with aplomb and humor (his troubleshooting section includes "water pooling around tank" and "cookie floating in tank"). The only drawbacks to this book are a lack of illustrations and there is no real species profile to speak of. Since many, if not most, people start with an idea of what kind of fish they want to keep and work (backwards?) from there, a section would be helpful. But the information in the book will complement a species-focused book quite nicely.



4. This book helped me setup my first marine aquarium. The advice on setup, run up and maintenance is well written and interjected with great wit every once in a while. It is packed with very useful information. The book is very close to a perfect marine starter manual. It's only flaws lack of some graphics (such as the disease section) and in organization. That is the only reason I did not give the book a five star rating. These minor flaws are easily overlooked and overshadowed by the wealth of the book. If you are a first time marine aquarianist (as am I) this is a well-written, excellent book to start with. If you have been in the hobby for a while, it is an excellent reference.



5. I referred to Moe's book to confirm that my fish had Black Ich (my first experience with a fish disease). The book stated clearly the proper treatment,and I even carried the book into the fish store to confirm what needed to be done. I'm happy to say, fish are now Ichless. This is the kind of book you would want to have nearby, so diagnosis and treatment can happen quickly.

1 comments about Bring Me Home! Saltwater Aquariums Make a Great Hobby (Bring Me Home!).

1. I was very impressed with this book. It covers a lot of information starting from what you need to consider while deciding if you and your family are even ready to add an aquarium to your home. Then it goes on to helpful information like whether you want a fish only or mini reef, costs involved, choosing the right tank, choosing a theme, decorations, live rock, how to set up the tank, how to cycle the tank and which tests to perform, info on some of the most popular fish and how to choose the right ones, how to choose a good dealer and what questions to ask them (and they list the answers you should get to tell if the dealer is good or not), and how to keep your fish healthy. And that's only the things I can think of off the top of my head!!
   
   There's just tons of excellent info and some common sense tips that may not have occurred to you along with helpful charts that you can photocopy and use. Very helpful and worded in a way that was very easy for a beginner like myself to understand. Definitely invest in this one if you're just starting out. You won't regret it.

5 comments about The Tetra Encyclopedia of Koi.

1. This is one of the best books that I have found on Koi. Beautiful color
   photographs abound in this informative book. If you have to have only one book on Koi-this is the one. Lot of good advice on building a pond, what to do if there are problems such as illness, identifying fish pathogens and their treatment, different kinds of koi. I especially like the pictures of other people's ponds and landscaping-full of good ideas.



2. I lost half of my Koi in the space of 6 hours, because I was counting on this book, and it does not even mention the catastrophic disaster known as PH Crash. Unless you find out about that, and take preventative measures, this WILL happen to you!!

   This book fails to describe water chemistry in sufficient detail, and these days it's pretty outdated. However, it does have a fantastic photo catalogue of koi varieties, and a decent overview of health problems, pond construction, and seasonal care. If you have fish, make sure to get multiple books in case one is missing important information.




3. I have kept koi and bred them for around 5 years now. And when I pick up a koi book this always seems to be the first one I go to. As far as I'm concerned, if I had only one koi book this would be the one. If you're about to get into koi don't do it without the Tetra Encyclopedia of Koi.



4. Amazing. The only problem I had with this book is getting it out of my wife's hands. It covers EVERYTHING. Sections on Filtration, Pond design, Feeding (listing alternative foods that Koi enjoy), Anatomy (first rate), Selecting & showing your koi, a detail listing on the different patterns and scale formation and probably the best ( in my opinion) Parasites and Diseases, what they are, were they come from and how to destroy them.

   This could be and should be renamed to "The koi instruction manual". If you are a koi breeders, I highly recommend this book, after reading it, I would wager that it would be THE book to recommend to your customers. The reason being that they would have less problems and get better enjoyment out of their hobby. It truly would be hard to go wrong with this book.




5. This book is as easy to read as any grade school book and as indepth as books which I have read that cost 5 times as much. I have enjoyed reading it so much that the day after I was done reading it, I started reading it again. I own a nursery for watergardening plants, fish and supplies, and I highly recommend it.

2 comments about Aquarium Owner's Manual.

1. The author attempts to cover all types of salt and freshwater aquariums and does a seemingly decent job. This book lacks the meat and potatoes you could find in other popular marine books that will help guide you to making informed decisions on the direction you want to take your tank. Also bear in mind that the author uses short and wide aquariums in her examples as opposed to the deeper tanks sold in the US, and makes blanket assumptions on the characterics of fish.



2. My daughter (7) and I setup our first tropical tank and used this book, along with resources on the internet and from our local fish store. I thought this provided a good overview that isn't too technical or long. I read it in an afternoon. Some things I thought were interesting;
   -A history of fish-keeping as a hobby.
   -Good photos and descriptions of the fish
   -Several different tank setups with photos and fish selection.
   -Keeping the fish healthy with photos of what common problems look like. I've heard of ich, but now I know what it looks like.

   Plus, it also covers marine (saltwater) tanks which we may want to do if we stay with the hobby.

   Overall an excellent book to start with.

2 comments about Lake Tanganyika Cichlids (Complete Pet Owner's Manual).

1. Barrons in general, does a great job in presenting thier information in a concise and clear manner. Even beginners will have no problem following along in this 'pocket reference' publication. Do not let the price or size of the book sway you. It is packed with all of the pertenent information. Tanganikan cichlids are wonderful fishes and barrons does an excellent job of intoducing all of the husbandry techniques needed to keep these fish happy and healthy. One drawback is that more experienced aquarists or ichthyologists might find the book lacking in some of the detailed areas. Although overall, you pretty much can't go wrong when purchasing this book



2. Mr. Smith covered all the bases with this book. From giving an educational step by step way to set up and maintain an African cichlid tank. he offers good quality pictures of a wide variety of fish with a very informational care and breeding for each fish. I recommend this book to all interested in keeping these fish.