Whales and Other Marine Mammals of California and Baja

David Allinson is the president of the Rocky Point Bird Observatory in Victoria, B.C.

Lone Pine’s introductory identification guide to the whales and marine
mammals of the California coast is full of interesting information and
excellent illustrations. In fact, any whale watcher on the Pacific Coast
will find this guide useful—especially the introduction, which covers
everything from whale conservation and research to the creatures’
natural history, behavior, and viewing locales. Here, one can get
answers to such common questions as whether whales sleep and how a
whale’s blowhole works.

Ian Sheldon’s highly detailed drawings illustrate the form of each
species with character and vibrancy. His method of drawing the whales
from left to right across the pages helps the reader distinguish
features when comparing them to each other. My only quibble is that each
figure is broken in two by the fold of the book; I found myself
stretching the binding back to better reveal the images.

Novice whale enthusiasts will appreciate the color-coded pages for
family groups, as this speeds up the identification process. Finally,
the inclusion of a handy listing of whale research and conservation
groups guides one to the many on-line Internet resources.