The Fourth Edition of The Light and Smith Manual continues a sixty-five-year tradition of providing to both students and professionals an indispensable, comprehensive, and authoritative guide to Pacific coast marine invertebrates of coastal waters, rocky shores, sandy beaches, tidal mud flats, salt marshes, and floats and docks. This classic and unparalleled reference has been newly expanded to include all common and many rare species from Point Conception, California, to the Columbia River, one of the most studied areas in the world for marine invertebrates. In addition, although focused on the central and northern California and Oregon coasts, this encyclopedic source is useful for anyone working in North American coastal ecosystems, from Alaska to Mexico. More than one hundred scholars have provided new keys, illustrations, and annotated species lists for over 3,500 species of intertidal and many shallow water marine organisms ranging from protozoans to sea squirts. This expanded volume covers sponges, sea anemones, hydroids, jellyfish, flatworms, polychaetes, amphipods, crabs, insects, snails, clams, chitons, and scores of other important groups. The Fourth Edition also features introductory chapters on marine habitats and biogeography, interstitial marine life, and intertidal parasites, as well as expanded treatments of common planktonic organisms likely to be encountered in near-to-shore shallow waters.

This volume provides individual treatments of the major molluscan taxa. Each chapter provides an overview of the evolution, phylogeny and classification of a group of molluscs, as well as more specific and detailed coverage of their biology (reproduction, feeding and digestion, excretion, respiration etc.), their long fossil record and aspects of their natural history. The book is illustrated with hundreds of colour figures. In both volumes, concepts are summarised in colour-coded illustrations. Key selling features: Comprehensively reviews molluscan biology and evolutionary history Includes a description the anatomy and physiology of anatomical systems Up to date treatment with a comprehensive bibliography Reviews the phylogenetic history of the major molluscan lineages

Mollusks have been important to humans since our earliest days. Initially, when humans were primarily interested in what they could eat or use, mollusks were important as food, ornaments, and materials for tools. Over the centuries, as human knowledge branched out and individuals started to study the world around them, mollusks were important subjects for learning how things worked. In this volume, the editors and contributors have brought together a broad range of topics within the field of malacology. It is our expectation that these topics will be of interest and use to amateur and professional malacologists.