Best Reef Aquarium Reads?

[Punchanello]

Years ago I picked up this book from a second hand book store for $1 mostly because I love the ocean and the pictures looked good. Little did I know it would sow the seed of this obsession.

The Complete Book of the Marine Aquarium
Vincent B. Hargreaves

I'm reading this one right now -

Aquarium Corals
Eric H. Borneman

Probably the best book I've read on the subject and bridges the gap between scientific literature and material that is easily digestible for the average hobbyist. Forums are great but there's nothing like qualified, referenced material.

What are your favourites and recommendations?

 

[d0ughb0y]

My classics collection.
Clown fished by Wilkerson
Corals by Julian Sprung
Book of Coral Propagation by Anthony Calfo
Aquarium Corals by Eric Borneman

 

[ca1ore]

Though Pros outweigh Cons, one of the latter from robust online communities like RC has been the death largely of quality books on reef tanks. Most of the good ones are now 15 plus years old. Borneman's book is a good one. For fish the never completed Scott Michael's Reef fish series is excellent. Kuiter's books on fish are excellent for the pictures but light on husbandry information. My personal favorite is the four volume Modern Coral Reef series by Nielsen - but again its 20 years old now. I don't personally think the Sprung/Delbeek three volume series has aged particularly well, though the third volume was an attempt to update the first two (in part). I have most of the books published on reef tanks (bought when initially published), but I almost never pull them out. My kids look at the pictures now and then, but better and more contemporary information can be had online now.

 

[64Ivy]

Just to follow up on ca1ores post, because of the scarcity of relevant aquarium hobby based literature these days, I simply recommend 'Coral' magazine if you need to turn pages...and you don't mind only being a couple months behind any breaking news.

 

[Punchanello]

Though Pros outweigh Cons, one of the latter from robust online communities like RC has been the death largely of quality books on reef tanks.

Sadly I think social media is becoming the death of forums. I've not been in the hobby long but even to my eyes the advice contained in snap posts is all too often eye-wateringly bad. And it's rare that this stuff is challenged. The slow, thoughtful, progressive nature of the hobby is the antithesis of the careless, hyperspeed of social media.

What I gain from the books as a noob is the theory. It fills in the gaps where online discussion doesn't. At the very least gives me the ability to filter some of the stuff I read as probable/plausible/unlikely or probably BS.



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[der_wille_zur_macht]

Borneman's Corals is my favorite. I find it helpful that he comes from the same cut as me - a hobbyist with interest in the science, versus a scientist writing for the hobby.

I agree regarding social media. The unfortunate downside is that it gives everyone a platform and there's no vetting or editing to ensure quality. The good news is that no matter what changes in the hobby, the basic facts stay the same. Borneman's book covers basic needs of corals - those will never change, even if the equipment and methods do. Too much of the hobby is focused on equipment and methods, reading books like these gives you what you really need to be successful in the long term, no matter how old they are.

 

[ca1ore]

Sadly I think social media is becoming the death of forums.

Not sure I get your point - online forums are a form of social media. Are you suggesting things like Twitter will replace online forums? If so, I don't think so. As my kids say, 'Twitter is what adults think kids think is cool, only they don't and it isn't'. The reason forums have largely killed off books is because it's a better, more timely and cheaper way to impart the same information .... Mostly.

I do agree though that the problem with social media is that there is no way to vette credibility. Any knucklehead with a video camera and internet access can be Captain Reef Tank, or with just the latter disseminate a boatload of bad advice. Sure, the imposters eventually are revealed, but many sheeple may be led astray.

 

[Punchanello]

Not sure I get your point - online forums are a form of social media. Are you suggesting things like Twitter will replace online forums? If so, I don't think so. As my kids say, 'Twitter is what adults think kids think is cool, only they don't and it isn't'. The reason forums have largely killed off books is because it's a better, more timely and cheaper way to impart the same information .... Mostly.

I should have explained myself better. I was trying to distinguish between pre-facebook and post-facebook as the longest surviving mass social media platform. I have been on large forums for over 15 years about fishing, football, kayaks etc etc. Not one of those interests are any less popular but all of those forums are now dead or have far less traffic than they ever did.

Something is drawing people away from traditional message boards/forums. I've made an assumption it is mass social media but perhaps there is another reason. If it is social media I would argue that it is a much poorer way to share information about complex things for a whole bunch of reasons.

I hope you are right and they remain as popular as they have ever been. I like instagram, Facebook, Twitter, even Pinterest and a handful of others for a whole bunch of reasons. But if I want to talk and read about something nuanced I come here.

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[ca1ore]

I should have explained myself better. I was trying to distinguish between pre-facebook and post-facebook as the longest surviving mass social media platform. I have been on large forums for over 15 years about fishing, football, kayaks etc etc. Not one of those interests are any less popular but all of those forums are now dead or have far less traffic than they ever did.

Something is drawing people away from traditional message boards/forums. I've made an assumption it is mass social media but perhaps there is another reason. If it is social media I would argue that it is a much poorer way to share information about complex things for a whole bunch of reasons.

Ah, OK, gotcha ....

Don't know the answer, though it may simply be that diversity of options means less 'market share' for the stalwarts. Though I spend a bit of time on other reef boards, RC gets the lions share of my posts - and I don't see a decline in activity here. My other money pit hobby is high end audio/video, and I definately see a decline in forum participation, but I'd chalk that up to declining consumers. Audiophiles are old, dying off and younger people don't really care about audio quality.

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

It may depend on the niche you're in, as well. I don't feel like there's an overall decline here on RC, but my once-thriving local club forum here is nearly dead. The club long-termers are all talking about how the discussion has moved to facebook groups. I don't really spend a lot of time using facebook groups so I'm not sure if that's actually true.

 

[WLachnit]

Ah, OK, gotcha ....



Don't know the answer, though it may simply be that diversity of options means less 'market share' for the stalwarts. Though I spend a bit of time on other reef boards, RC gets the lions share of my posts - and I don't see a decline in activity here. My other money pit hobby is high end audio/video, and I definately see a decline in forum participation, but I'd chalk that up to declining consumers. Audiophiles are old, dying off and younger people don't really care about audio quality.

Having an interest in quality audio/video as well, I find the decline in quality audio and video content frustrating. Everyone is happy with streaming movies, yet the quality is nowhere near that of blue-Ray. And, I feel that blue-Ray will eventually disappear because of decreased demand.