Aquaculture 231 (2004) 597 600 www.elsevier.

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Book reviews
Farming freshwater prawns. A manual for the culture of the giant river prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) New, M.B., FAO Fisheries Technical Paper. No. 428. FAO, Rome. 2002. 212 pp. Price US$50.00, ISBN 92-5-104811-8 It was not so long ago that demand and hence production of farmed Macrobrachium languished down among the also-rans, at least by comparison with the tonnages reported from their penaeid brethren (marine shrimp). The past decade, however, has seen freshwater prawn farming (all species) escalate to previously undreamt of heights: world output being recently estimated at around 250,000 mt. This increase bears silent witness not only to the skills of farmers, scientific technicians and market promoters but also to the persistence and tireless dedication of people like Michael New OBE and his co-authors who, over several decades, have produced original research reviews, organised timely international conferences and compiled authoritative technical manuals to underpin the industry. This latest contribution from the New stable greatly extends a highly successful, earlier manual (New and Singholka, FAO Technical Paper 225, 1982/1985), the importance and popularity of which ensured that it was published in English, French, Spanish, Farsi, Hindi and Vietnamese. It is expected that the present English edition will also appear in Arabic and Chinese as well as French and Spanish. The manual, which deals exclusively with Macrobrachium rosenbergii, has eight sections dealing with basic biology, site selection, broodstock, hatchery, post-larvae and nursery, on-growing, harvesting and post-harvest handling and marketing. In addition, there are 11 annexes on specific topics such as larval stage identification, sub-sand water extraction, maturation diets, brine shrimp, farm-made feeds, stock estimation, seine nets, prawn size management and transplantations. Glossary, abbreviations and conversion factors are included. The books 212 pages are crammed with tables (20) and figures (100); among the latter are 100 photographs, all but one being in colour. Twenty-four boxes are distributed throughout the text and provide instructions on a range of practical issues including the removal of iron and manganese from water, activating bio-filters, pond management strategies and size grading. Examples of integrated culture and feeding and growth rates are also shown. Physically, the manual is soft-back bound, beautifully illustrated and very attractively produced on semi-glossy paper. However I, and no doubt the author too, have misgivings as to how this format will stand up to the rigours of use in wet hatcheries and on farms. It would be a pity indeed if its fine quality consigned it to the bookshelves of the managing directors office instead of on the technicians workbench.

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A particularly commendable feature of the manual is that the author, rather than present numerous strategies and techniques and let the (possibly inexperienced) reader decide which to follow, clearly commits himself to stating which practices he recommends and which he does not. For example, he recommends that no attempt should be made to treat severely diseased batches of larvaerather, to destroy the affected population, clean, disinfect and re-stock. Further, in the light of experience, he no longer proposes the strategy of continuous culture for on-growing even though this was detailed in previous editions of the manual. Underlining in the text is often used for emphasis but personally, I found the cook-book style of writing in some sections, e.g. you should do this you should do that although clear and to the point, became a little irksome after a while. Michael News substantial experience of prawn farming and of working with those starting new ventures also shows through in a wealth of precautionary edicts. He is right, for instance to warn against blind acceptance of stated safe or harmful levels of many potential toxins and pollutants that may neither yet be established nor fully understood; a situation that has given cause for concern for at least a decade. Also, recent developments such as the use of nursery cage systems are treated with caution as the potentially useful technique has not yet been widely proven. He also includes a number of helpful but often neglected tips, for example, building in the facility to flush water intake pipes to waste before filling a hatchery tank in case the water has become stagnant or too hot in pipelines exposed to sunshine. Another example is the activation of bio-filters autotrophic bacteria with ammonium chloride; although others have preferred ammonium citrate as this also provides a substrate for the development of the filters heterotrophic populations. Informative charts for the evaluation and recording of larval condition are presented together with photocopying permission so they may be displayed in hatchery work areas. Users of the manual will find many topics presented in great detail, e.g. hatchery and on-growing techniques, sub-sand water extraction, preparation and feeding of brine shrimp, heterogeneous growth, while others are less comprehensively described, e.g. maturation diets, international marketing, code of practice for introductions and transplantations and economics. It is because other more specific publications exist on construction of ponds and farms, that the author opts to provide mainly the general, but nevertheless vitally important criteria, i.e. the dos and donts, of pond placement and formation. As a result, new managers will have to obtain these specific reference works to study the actual methods employed by contractors. Similarly, while it is stated that discharged wastewater should be treated, the details given are limited to suggestions that treatment can be by sedimentation, algal growth or aeration. For fisheries enhancement and restocking methods, the reader is again referred elsewhere. These comments are not intended to be unduly critical since to try and embrace all the ramifications of practical freshwater prawn farming in one manual would undoubtedly involve excessive duplication as well as make for an unwieldy tome. It is inevitable, therefore that anyone totally new to prawn farming would also need to refer elsewhere to specialized publicationsparticularly the 11 FAO manuals and technical reports that are cited. That said, when viewed in conjunction with the authors other recent major publication (New and Valenti, 2000, Freshwater Prawn

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Culture, Blackwell Science, 443 pp.) this combination should provide students, academics, extension workers, technicians and financiers alike with excellent, authoritative information entirely sufficient for their needs. Michael New has again brought us the benefits of his considerable experiences in freshwater prawn farming in this colourful volume. For me, the manual stands out because of the authoritative and clear recommendations regarding the culture strategies and systems he favours, and the unequivocal way in which the extensive, practical advice is given. I have no hesitation in recommending this manual, indeed I class it as essential reading for anyone involved in, investing in or studying Macrobrachium culture. J.F. Wickins Betws yn Rhos, Wales, UK
doi:10.1016/j.aquaculture.2003.08.004

Responsible Marine Aquaculture R.R. Stickney, J.P. McVey. Cabi Publ., Wallingford, Oxon, UK. 2002. 416 pp., hardback, price GBP65.00, US$120.00, ISBN 0 85199 604 3

The book focuses on: Minimal net utilization of natural resources; Production of healthy products for food; Appropriate regulations and policies; Environmental impact and Pollution from aquaculture; Case studies from various geographical settings, including North and Latin America, Asia and the Pacific. With the expansion of the world aquaculture industry, there has been increasing concern over the sustainability and environmental impact. This book addresses this topical issue, concentrating on marine aquaculture. Chapters have been developed from a meeting of the World Aquaculture Society in January 2001, and additional contributions have also been commissioned. In total 17 contributions can be found dealing, e.g. with the management, marine mammals, recreational fishing related to aquaculture, stock enhancement, polyculture, genetic changes and the use of wild caught juveniles. The theme of the volume is not particularly clear for the reader, but this is in part due to the breadth of topics that are being addressed, and it would have benefited from a closing chapter, to point the way ahead on sustainability for aquaculture. The editors wisely steer clear of trying to pin down the elusive concept of sustainabilitya philosophical challenge that could fill a few chapters on its ownand concentrate on letting the case studies tell their own story. However, it would have been beneficial to try and tease out those main issues under which aquaculture has perhaps unique or particularly pressing sustainability concerns, and thus helped guide the reader through the wide range of views and opinions expressed in this volume. In total, the volume provides an informed starting point to the sustainability debate in aquaculture and the varying guises in which sustainability presents itself to aquaculturebut where that debate will take us in the future remains unclear for the present.