BIODIVERSITY OF TROPICAL MICROFUNGI
BIODIVERSITY OF TROPICAL MICROFUNGI edited by Kevin D. Hyde, 1996. Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong, 421pp., 32 colour plates, HK$360, softcover.
This collection of contributions on the diversity of tropical microfungi is a useful reminder of how poorly studied are this group, despite their importance in nutrient cycling, as plant and animal pathogens, in food production and spoilage, in biodegradation and biodeterioration of a whole host of substrates, and in their various pharmaceutical, agricultural and biotechnological roles, some of which are only just beginning to emerge.
Fungi have almost always been neglected in studies of biological diversity and the tropical microfungi are a perfect example of this. Only now are we beginning to realize how many of them there are (and how many more are awaiting discovery) along with their roles and potential uses. Lest anyone should doubt the importance of this huge group, simply remember that penicillin, cyclosporin, cephalosporin, cortisone and its derivatives (for example the corticosteroids and oral contraceptives) and vitamin B2 are all produced by microfungi and are amongst the most important modern day pharmaceuticals.
This collection, like any selection, is not fully comprehensive and the inclusion of French Guiana and Brazil as examples of regional studies suggest just how great is our lack of knowledge. It is telling also that a great deal of emphasis still lies on species richness, the first step leading to an appreciation and discussion of biodiversity.
The book begins with an excellent introduction to the subject area by Amy Rossman whose words could be the review of this book - "This book brings together knowledge of tropical fungi that, up to now, has been diffuse and difficult to attain. All chapters point to the untapped and diverse storehouse of fungi awaiting discovery". This is followed by Hyde and Hawksworth's chapter, which deals with the problems of measuring and monitoring biodiversity and points to a major problem, particularly in the tropics - the lack of suitably trained mycologists. They point out that a figure of 1.5 million fun-al species is thought to be a conservative estimate with approximately 72,000 having been described so far! Wildman then deals with the pharmaceutical potential of tropical microfungi and speculates as to whether they will become as important as the temperate forms as producers of novel secondary metabolites.
The next six chapters deal with the general diversity of microfungi on various substrates and include accounts of plant pathogenic forms, endophytes, mangrove fungi, lichens and insect pathogens. This is followed by an examination of microfungi on two particularly tropical substrates, palms and the Pandanaceae. Chapters 12 and 13 deal with the freshwater ascomycetes and hyphomycetes of the tropics, and the next 5 chapters deal with taxonomic groupings of microfungi. Thus, in chapter 14, Korf deals with the sometimes more "flashy., discomycetes, although he is at pains to point out that it is only relatively few that are brightly coloured and conspicuous! The Rhytismatales, Phyllachoraceae, Xylariaceae and Hypocereales are the other groups selected for inclusion. In the last three chapters, research on the microfungi of French Guiana and the Brazilian tropical forest and Cerrado are presented as illustrations of floristic studies on specific regions in the tropics.
The book is well produced with good black and white plates and 32 excellent colour plates. Presumably, the inclusion of these colour plates was the main reason for the somewhat inflated (by Hong Kong standards) cost of this book. I have no doubt however that, despite its price, the book will (in the words of the Editor) "both stimulate interest in research into tropical fungi, their variety and potential use; and provide an important baseline for future studies on this relatively neglected component of our planet's biological diversity". As I have said before, there is much yet to be done by "fungis" and "fungals". The truth is out there somewhere!
JOHN HODGKISSP.39
WHERE TO WATCH BIRDS AND OTHER WILDLIFE ON HONGKONG AND GUANGDONG by T.J. Woodward and G.J. Carey, 1996. Tim Woodward, Hong Kong, 200 pp., 32 colour plates, HK$140, softcover.
For the past few years the senior author of this book, Tim Woodward, has enlivened the Bulletin of the Hong Kong Birdwatching Society with his accounts of travels to nature reserves and other potentially interesting wildlife sites in Guangdong Province. These experiences form the bones of the book but it also draws extensively on visits by Hong Kong birdwatchers and other naturalists from the late 1970s.
The book begins with a brief introduction to the physical environment and climate of Hong Kong and Guangdong as well as general advice on travel, accommodation and visas primarily of interest to the overseas visitor. The bulk of the book is then made up of descriptions of sites of wildlife interest; covering access, accommodation, a general description of habitats, and wildlife species known to be present. Sites are grouped together geographically with, often, a series of sites sharing common access arrangements being linked together. Maps are provided showing the locations of most sites and, wherever possible, maps are also included of sites - at least the major ones. Information on each site varies, depending on its importance or how much is known, ranging from a couple of lines for some to two pages for the better-known forest sites such as Dinghu Shan and Ba Bao Shan. Information is presented in a narrative style - this makes for pleasant and sometimes entertaining reading (especially where it touches on such cultural issues as night-life in small town Guangdong) - but in some cases key points (such as access arrangements) can be hard to follow. The wildlife information shows a strong bias towards birds; this doubtless reflects the interests of the authors but perhaps also represents the principal role that bird-watchers have played in exploring the sites. However, I suspect that an intending visitor primarily interested in other groups would be grateful for a fuller description of, at least, the principal habitat types at some sites.
Hong Kong sites occupy almost 25% of this section, but the level of detail provided is probably not sufficient to be of interest to a Hong Kong resident and is certainly inferior to that contained in David Diskin's Birding Hong Kong (1994).
The coverage of Guangdong sites is a different matter altogether. Though almost all of Guangdong is now, in theory, accessible to the independent traveller, information on sites and, especially, access and accommodation has been fragmented and the prospect of organising a trip has been somewhat intimidating, at least for someone unable to speak Cantonese. In bringing this information together the authors have provided a major service which will do much to encourage intending visitors and make visits more feasible and effective.
Whilst the site guides are the most important part of the book subsequent sections include historical notes on the birds of Guangdong (which provide plenty of opportunities for enthusiasts to follow up sightings of species which have not been seen in recent years); a list of Guangdong nature reserves; and checklists of the birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians of Hong Kong and Guangdong with notes as to at which sites they have been seen; a bibliography; and a list of place names with their English and Chinese equivalents. The text is enlivened by sketches by Y.Y. Lee, whilst colour plates include general illustrations of habitats and "representative" examples of the fauna. Some of the latter are very good; though it may be a matter of personal preference as to whether they have a place in a work of this type.
This is a pioneering work and inevitably I have criticisms. Most importantly, it is very difficult to locate particular sites. The maps are grouped together away from the site descriptions, and are cross-referenced to these by a series of codes. I found these codes impossible to follow, some sites are not shown on the maps (even where these cover the geographical area in which the sites are located) and there is no comprehensive index. A simple page reference linking the sites to the maps would be preferable to the complicated code system. Overall, map quality could be improved and, ideally, in a book of this nature maps should be located in the body of the text. I would also have preferred to see more information on the status of the species recorded at each site and, in this regard (at least for birds) Forest birds of Southeast China (R.W.Lewthwaite, Hong Kong Bird Report I995 pp 150-203) should be consulted in tandem with the present work. Finally, the access details for some sites are rather vague and the intending visitor would be well-advised to seek further details before embarking on a trip or, at least, to expect to have to improvise on the spot!
These comments do not, however, detract from the value of this book. It is essential reading for any naturalist contemplating a trip to Guangdong and, hopefully, will encourage more exploration. Many of the sites listed have received only minimal coverage and there are plenty of opportunities to make new discoveries.
MICHAEL R. LEVEN
P.39-40
CHINA'S THREATENED WILDLIFE by Liz and Keith Laidler, 1996. Blandford, London, 192 pp., 20 pounds sterling, hardbound.
This glossy coffee table book starts off with a good general introduction to the status, history and present position of conservation in China, followed by a rather general look at the vegetation zones. The main part of the book however has quite detailed accounts covering around 20 species of endangered animals in China. The number of species covered is low, but the accounts are obviously well researched, being broken down into sections covering range, habitat, behaviour, status and conservation measures, and are coupled with some high quality photographs.
Unfortunately, almost all of the animal photographs seem to be of animals in captivity, notable exceptions being the several ungulates which I am sure would have given the photographer major problems. However, I do feet that having close-ups of species like tigers and other hard-to-see wildlife gives readers a mistaken view of the tameness of Chinese wildlife. On the flip side, as in all glossy "gweilo" natural history books on the Middle Kingdom, there are some beautiful scenic shots.
One of the more interesting snippets of information contained in this book is on the status of Crested Ibises in China, a conservation success, and the fact that the last two Crested Ibises in Japan were deep-frozen to possibly enable future resurrection from their DNA.
If you like coffee table books (and don't already have a shelf full of them on Chinese naural history) then I would recommend this book. However, there is little in here for the serious naturalist and, at 20 pounds sterling (and with the exchange rate used by Hong Kong book shops almost double that of banks) it is quite expensive.
PAUL ASTON
P.41
INTO THE WILD - The Rare and Endangered Species of China by Tan Bangjie, 1996. New World Press, Beijing, 108 pp., 101 colour photographs, HK$ 190, softcover.
Over the past few years China has finally drawn the much-deserved attention of Hong Kong-based naturalists. This comes as no surprise since China is home to more than 10% of the world's mammal species and 13% of the world's bird species. However, many readers will notice that most English books concerning China's wildlife are actually written by western naturalists. I have no doubt most of them have great knowledge and experience of China's enormous array of flora and fauna, but one wonders what the Chinese ecologists would put into a book regarding the rare animals of their own country. The author, Professor Tan Bangjie, has devoted the last 46 years to studying the wildlife of China, and is a member of a number of international specialist conservation groups.
Tan has divided the animals described (mostly endemic species) into ten chapters, and kicks off with the ever-popular Giant Panda (what else?). The detailed account refers to nomenclature (in English and Chinese), morphological description, distribution and ecology.
This pattern is then vaguely repeated for each group of animals (primates, deer, Bovidae, Felidae, elephant, aquatic mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles) which Tan has put in the different chapters.
In this well-bound, full-colour book a total of 86 species / subspecies are discussed. Most species are illustrated by one or more photographs which are often taken in natural habitats. Unfortunately, the photographers failed to provide quality images of some rarities such as the Black Muntjak (Muntiacus crinifrons) and Chinese Giant Salamander (Andrias davidianus), and it is quite disappointing that there isn't even a line drawing of the Dugong (Dugong dugon) when two full pages were taken up for this species' account. However, there is also some intriguing information, such as Wild Yak breeding pattern and theories on Chinese distribution of Asiatic elephant.
Personally speaking, I found that the author is trying to 'talk' to the readers in an informal manner, and at times this could be rather frustrating. For instance, you may find it a bit of a struggle trying to locate the scientific name of a particular species in the species account, and you can find the IUCN Red List category for the Giant Salamander, but not for the Alligator Lizard (more commonly called Crocodile Lizard). The writing style is somewhat confusing and I found it difficult to follow sometimes. Maybe the author could have written the text in a more standardized format
Nevertheless, I recommend this book to readers with a keen interest in China's wildlife, as seen through the eyes of a reputable Chinese zoologist.
BOSCO PUI LOK CHAN
P.41
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