An Unexpected Ecosystem: The Amazon as Revealed by Fisheries

by Michael Goulding, Ronaldo Barthem

The Amazon has the richest freshwater fish fauna in the world, and its evolution is closely linked to the rainforest and the vast floating meadows of the floodplains. Fisheries illustrate the urgent need to look at the Amazon rainforest and its rivers as an ecosystem in view of current environmental changes. Proper management of the fisheries requires protecting flooded forests, floating meadows, headwater spawning areas, and other critical habitats. With over 200 color photos and illustrations, this book richly illustrates how the fishes and fisheries are part of the river-and-rainforest ecosystem and what needs to be done for their conservation.

241 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2007

About the author

Michael Goulding is a rainforest ecologist with the Amazon Conservation Alliance and author of several books.