Tons of ichthyological fun found in 5-pound textbook

By Susan Scott

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Mar 26, 2012

~~<p>As I was examining the new book “Certainly More Than You Wanted to Know About the Fishes of the Pacific Coast, a Postmodern Experience,” it fell open to a photo of a fish I don’t know and a passage that caught my eye: “Scandinavians report that oarfish flesh sucks big time and even dogs won’t eat it. However, I imagine dogs would roll in it, big time.”</p>
<p>What’s an oarfish? The previous page explained, “Dude, if your fish is ribbony and has really long posterior dorsal fin rays and really, really long pelvic fin rays, and those rays are bright red, it’s, like, an oarfish.” The description goes on with etymology, size, range, life history, fishery and relationships to other fish.</p>
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As I was examining the new book “Certainly More Than You Wanted to Know About the Fishes of the Pacific Coast, a Postmodern Experience,” it fell open to a photo of a fish I don’t know and a passage that caught my eye: “Scandinavians report that oarfish flesh sucks big time and even dogs won’t eat it. However, I imagine dogs would roll in it, big time.”

What’s an oarfish? The previous page explained, “Dude, if your fish is ribbony and has really long posterior dorsal fin rays and really, really long pelvic fin rays, and those rays are bright red, it’s, like, an oarfish.” The description goes on with etymology, size, range, life history, fishery and relationships to other fish. Login for more...