Marine Algae of California (ISBN 0804721521)

Best, most complete keys to west coast marine algae:
This is the algae bible for the west coast of North America. Abbott and Hollenberg's "Marine Algae of California" is without question the best taxonomic guide to algae of the region available anywhere. This book contains taxonomic keys, summaries of the geographic ranges, biology, and ecology of algae. It also has excellent line drawings that show details of the thalli of algae, as well as details of the characteristics that distinguish one alga from another. This book is a "must have" for anyone who is interested in learning the algae of the west coast of North America. This is not a pretty picture book of algae, it is a research reference to west coast algae. If you are looking for "the" authoritative work for algae of the west coast," then this is the book for you.