Book Review: Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas by Paul Humann

Oh look at all the pretty little fishies! They are colorful like the rainbow!!! I want to see all the pretty fishies!!! Or at least some of them...
 
In approximately 16 days I will be in the Bahamas, however I booked my trip about 3 months ago and ever since I have been gathering as much knowledge about my stay as I possibly can. From local hot spots, to daily calendar events that will be occurring, besides that though, I have also been trying to learn about what to expect when it comes to the sea.

Mainly the Caribbean waters is why I'm going. I plan on diving and snorkeling during my stay, and before hopping into these unknown waters I wanted to know about what I'd be up against, from coral that may be poisonous, from fish I should avoid if I come in contact with them. Most of all though I wanted to know what types of fish I could expect to see while diving/snorkeling.

I ordered a copy of Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas,by Paul Humann from my local library and truly it's like the holy grail to everything that has to do with fish that I may come across while diving in the Bahamas.

The book itself consists of 512 sleek high gloss pages, with 187 beautifully colored photographs of different types of fish.

What I love, love, loved about Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas was the fact that more than 80% of the photos included also labeled where they fish had it's photo taken. I came across around 40 different species of fish that were photographed off of the shores of the island we are staying on. This was pretty exciting itself.

Besides identifying different fish that I may or may not come across the book also gave me an idea about where the fish may be found, how deep it may be spotted, and its natural habits.

Not all of the fish you see in the book will be spotted at one particular location. Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas by Paul Humann covers quite a few locations, such as Nassau Bahamas, Grand Bahama Island, Florida, and other islands found in the Caribbean. I personally though was very impressed at the through detail, the tips were most helpful, and the photographs really added to the enjoyment of reading through this book.

I have learned that some smaller fish you wouldn't expect to find in deep waters, can only be found in deep waters, while some larger reef fish that you would expect to find in only deeper areas can actually be found in very low areas. This concept was a little strange and new to me, but hey... it was a learning process, and the book definitely gave me some pointers.

Overall:
 
If you are planning a trip to the Bahama's or anywhere in the Caribbean or Florida, definitely pick up a copy of Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas by Paul Humann. It's a great colorful book, and gives excellent tips on how to spot certain reef fish on your own.

I also recommend this one to those with children. The wonderful photos and information would be a great way to teach kids about what types of fish are in the sea. The colorful photos and section with sharks is sure to hold their attention!

5 out of 5 stars!

Besides the wonderful photos, and the tips on how to find certain fish, the book also had sections for more dangerous fish such as sharks, and honestly this was the scariest section in the book for me. I have a deep fear of sharks, and learning that some sharks such as the dangerous Bull Shark sometimes will roam the shallow waters on the island I will be staying on, is sort of frightening. No wait... it's very frightening!!!