This volume contains the papers given at two symposia held during 1985 and 1986 and sponsored by the Marine Fisheries and the Computer Users sections of the American Fisheries Society. The papers have been peer reviewed and are presented as would be papers in a journal.
The volume is divided into six sections: Introduction, Catch-at-Age Analyses, Bioenergetic Models, Fishery Systems Analysis, Sampling Methods and Analytical Programs and Packages. Three appendices list the programmes of the two symposia and the scientists who reviewed the papers. Each section, except the first, starts with Editor's Comments which consist mostly of brief overviews of the following papers. These short comments do little to integrate the papers.
The second section is the longest, filling almost half the book, and contains six papers. The section is dominated by Bernard Megrey's review and comparison of age-structured stock-assessment models. Billed as the first review of the subject, and occupying 41 pages, the paper provides a very detailed comparison of the methods available. Extensive tables list all the symbols used in the mathematical models, summarize and compare the assumptions made by them, summarize the advantages and disadvantages of different models, outline data requirements and provide an overall summary. Eleven different models are assessed although all are related to each other. The common core is developed at the start of the review. This paper on its own will make the book worth having for all practising fishery scientists.
The remaining five papers in the second section discuss different aspects and applications of age-structured stock-assessment models.
Two papers each cover bioenergetic models, fishery systems analysis and sampling methods. Analytical programs are discussed in three papers in the last section. The small space devoted to these approaches, which can be seen as alternatives to catch-at-age models, is a reflection of the practicality of the latter. Given that fishery scientists have to provide management advice, they want models that are easy to use and that work. Bioenergetic models capture more of the biology but require much more data. As discussed by Bledsoe and Megrey, they may also behave chaotically. Systems models, as described by McGlade and by Ault and Fox, allow fishery scientists to study the way the complete fishery system works, from fisherman down to the fish, but again, much information is required and many assumptions have to be made.
In summary, I would recommend this volume to all types of fishery scientist. Teachers will find it a valuable resource for class work, while researchers can find many ideas for future work. Fishery managers will also find the book useful in providing them with a review of the methods on which they depend.