12 replies to this topic

[Rocha]

Hi all, it is time that I update this and give it a new face. I want this to be more of a resource, so I will keep updating this top post with the most useful links, this way you don't have to scroll through all messages to find the links you need. You are welcome to post more and I will add to the list, but I will try to keep every link in this first message. So here is a compilation of what I consider the most useful and user friendly ones (the ones in bold are the most scientifically accurate, the others have mostly good IDs but they need to be double checked):

Fish:
FishBase http://www.fishbase.org/
Australian Museum http://www.amonline....ishes/identify/
Fishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific http://www.neotropic...shes.org/sftep/
Gobies http://www.gobiidae.com/
Fish Photo Database http://www.fishdb.co.uk/

Invertebrates:
Sea Slug Forum http://www.seaslugforum.net/
Nudibranch Identification http://www.nudipixel.net/
Mediterranean Slugs http://www.medslugs.de/
Cephalopods http://www.cephbase.utmb.edu/
Crustaceans (links) http://www.vims.edu/...crust_links.htm

Both:
Coral Reef Creatures http://www.reefimages.com/
Marine Life of the Philippines http://www.poppe-images.com/
Flora and Fauna of South California http://www.ladiving....fieldguide.html
SeaLifeBase http://www.sealifebase.org/

[scubamarli]

Thanks, Luis,
Good to see this compiled succinctly. Members should be aware that not all online resources can be counted on for utmost accuracy, so best to cross-check with ones created by museums or scientific organizations if possible.
Cheers,
Marli

[Paul Kay]

A couple of months ago I published "A fieldguide to the marine fishes of Wales and adjacent waters" (which actually covers most of the UK and Ireland as well). I have now started the update - by creating a website which will add data in as and when it becomes available. It is designed in iWeb, is (hopefully) very simple and is intended to supply ADDITIONAL information (or clearer) to the book.

Its at www.welshmarinefish.org

Edited by pgk, 04 September 2009 - 05:18 AM.

[Nick Hope]

I use the World Register of Marine Species a lot for detective work including establishing accepted species names http://www.marinespecies.org/

[Davidhol]

Some 33000 fish pictures with regional common as well as scientific names here
http://www.fishwise.co.za/

[FishFinders]

I live in Bali and i find http://lembehresort.com/critters.php very useful for this area as well.
for froggies: http://www.frogfish.ch/

[Davidhol]

Anybody have critter id iphone apps? I see they have Neville Coleman's Marine Life eGuide. I'd love to have an oppinion before i fork out $20

[Davidhol]

I stopped being cheap and bought it. 2000 pixs all seem clear and reasobable quality with a short write up including latin and common names, location and habits. I haven't searched exhaustively but have not found any obvious errors. Seems like a good start for an always on hand ID source for many classes of reef critters and plants. Now I have it does it stop being "Online critter ID"

[Nick Hope]

I've just discovered Corals Of The World. Seems like the next best thing to Veron's book, which is way out of my budget. It's no good for browsing pics of corals, but if you have a good idea of what the coral is, then there are data, photos and distribution maps to help you confirm.

Edited by Nick Hope, 25 November 2011 - 01:03 AM.

[ATJ]

Anyone know of some good references for echinoderms and mainly sea stars? That's the big hole I have in my arsenal.

[Nick Hope]

If we're talking online, I keep Teresa Zubi's sea star page bookmarked, as well as the World Astreroida Database, but the latter is no good for browsing through pics to ID. Humann & DeLoach's Tropical Pacific Reef Creature Identification has something like 50 sea star species in it, with loads of pics, and it nailed most of my undetermined species. Depending on your region, it's a fantastic book anyway for everything else.

[ATJ]

Thanks, Nick. I think those sites will be useful for tropical species. There's a few species from around Sydney that I'm yet to nail. I have quite a few general books (e.g. Gosliner et al, for tropical inverts and Edgar for temperate Australia) but the more the merrier.

[rwe]

Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute is available at www.stri.org/sftep.

Two new free ID guide apps for neotropical shore-fishes, both with English and Spanish interfaces have also just been released. Release info below:

• Fishes: East Pacific, version 2, with iPad optimization, several iPad-specific features & an updated database. Covers 1,297 species & includes 3,600+ images. https://itunes.apple...d494644648?mt=8 or search in iTunes store for fishes east pacific

• Fishes: Greater Caribbean, version 1 for iphone. Covers 1,599 species, & includes 5,500+ images. https://itunes.apple...d570048678?mt=8 or search in iTunes store for fishes greater caribbean

Together these apps cover 2,775 species, ~ 20% of the world’s known tropical shore-fishes.

While I don't presently have an iphone to check out the apps, the caribbean version includes a few of my photos so must be good!