Marine Biology: An Ecological Approach (6th Edition)

*0-8053-4582-5, Nybakken, James and Bertness, Mark, Marine Biology: An Ecological Approach, Sixth Edition//--> Marine Biology: An Ecological Approach, Sixth Edition approaches the subject of marine biology by emphasizing the ecological principles that govern marine life throughout all ocean environments and by acknowledging the differences between marine and terrestrial ecosystems. This unique approach adds real-world relevance by exploring how organisms interact within their individual ecosystems while also focusing on the significance of human impact on the sea. Marine Environments, Plankton Communities, Oceanic Nekton, Deep-Sea Biology, Shallow-Water Subtidal Benthic Associations, Intertidal Ecology, Meiofauna, Estuaries and Salt Marches, Tropical Communities, Symbiotic Relationships, Human Impact on the Sea For all readers interested in marine biology and marine ecology.

Nybakken takes a community ecology approach to his discussions of the marine environment. There are chapters that address communities of the plankton, nekton, deep sea, nearshore subtidal regions, intertidal habitats, estuaries and marshes, the tropics and the poles, and so forth.

The photographs and illustrations are good, the text is well written, and examples are widely known. It may be true that Nybakken tends to pull more heavily on examples from the West Coast of the USA, but there are also ample numbers of examples from other areas of the world that support the text.

Each chapter is supported by a list of references from the professional (primary) scientific literature -- something a serious biology student would appreciate and use.

This is an easy book to teach from and to learn from. The information is excellent, the examples are clear, and the supporting graphics are good.

It is also notable that Nybakken not only discusses the biology of marine organisms, but he addresses the stewardship we have to conserve the planet's vital assemblage of marine resouces and biodiversity.


Book review   January 20, 2009
Krista C. Sweet
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

The book was used and was in good condition. I actually kept the book after I was done with the class because it had good, useful information in there. I actually referenced this text when writing up lab reports for my ecology class.


Marine Biology: An Ecological Approach   May 18, 2005
Laura M. Seager
0 out of 20 found this review helpful

Great text. Great price. Book arrived in excellent condition, in a timely manner, and Kevin Serkes, seller, was great with the follow up, and with addressing my concerns about other book orders I had placed. Thank you for a great job!!


An interesting text   September 8, 2009
Sleepypenguin45
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

I had to buy this book for a marine ecology class. I found the text very easy to understand and straightforward. It covers a wide variety of subjects, but because of this it does not go into great detail on many things, which is unfortunate.


Okay book   March 6, 2007
Christopher LCP Mendes (Boston, MA USA)
1 out of 7 found this review helpful

First let me just say that I love my Marine Biology class that I had to buy this book for. Now let me get down to it. I am sure there are better books out there if you are interested in the subject (if you have to buy it for class you don't have a choice). This book is sometimes interesting but I have found that at times they just try to put so much information in such a boring way that you just cannot learn it. This was particularly noticeable in chapter 2 about plankton. The book goes over about 10 different plankton species every other page and it is very boring. Other than that, the book is fine but nothing more than average.