Author: Hans J. Mayland & Dieter Bork
Publisher: Landbuch-Verlag GmbH, Hamburg Germany
Copyright 1996
English Edition 1997
Binding: Hard Cover
187 pages
137 photos
19 drawings
36 tables
28 maps
Bibliography: 149 references
This is a good but out-of-date basic text that gives identification and basic husbandry information for many of the dwarf cichlids that were known to the hobby when the book was published. However, it’s been more than 25 years since this book was completed and there have been many new discoveries and reassignments of undescribed fishes since publication. This, of course, is a continual problem with any book that focuses on identification. New discoveries are occurring with greater frequency. At the same time, name confusion exists among a number of fishes that appear only occasionally in the hobby. Finally, advances in genetic testing and analysis have provided both answers and new questions.
Despite the inevitable errors that time has brought, this remains a very good book. The Apistogramma section is very strong and most of the photos are outstanding. It is odd that a book titled South American Dwarf Cichlids would exclude Laetacara and Nannacara yet neither Genus is discussed in the book. Other than this shortcoming, the material presented is of excellent quality.
In all, I consider this to be a valuable book in my collection. Any time I acquire a new species or think about one, I check this reference for the valuable insights it provides.
Like all dwarf cichlid books, it’s rarely available and is typically very expensive when it is. However, it can be ordered from some specialty book dealers and you usually can buy South American Dwarf Cichlids at Amazon.com