Faune ichthyologique de l'Atlantique Nord.

[Paris], Bureau du Conseil International pour l'Exploration de la Mer, and Copenhague, Andr. Fred. Høst & Fils, 1929-1938. 430 loose leaved sheets, with index in printed wrappers. Single leaf with printed notice on the scope of the series loosely inserted. 4to (27.5 x 22.1 cm). 433 heavy, glossy paper leaves, printed double-sided in black and white; one loose, printed leaf; 23 pp. of text in printed wrappers (index). = A printed note, added to the first issue, states that the Conseil (in 1928) has made a decission: "d'entreprendre la publication d'une Faune illustrée des Poissons de l'Atlantique Nord. publié sous la forme de fiches, chaque espèce de Poisson ayant une fische distincte. rédigées en Allemand, Anglais ou Français par des specialistes. paraissent par cahier de 24; environ 15 cahiers sont prévus.". This leaflet continues by stating that the second issue will appear in October, the third in January 1930. Indeed, all sheets of the first issue are dated 1929, and written by various prominent ichthyologists, including Louis Boule, E. Ninni, L. Bertin, E. Ehrenbohm, and others. Each is in German or French and follows this scheme: Order, family, species name, large illustration of the animal, with or without anatomical details, diagnosis, variability, synonymy, distribution, biology, and major references. In later issues, several descriptions are in English, e.g. by R. S. Clark. Originally this work was published in issues, with rather random contents. This set however, has all the sheets in taxonomical order. A former owner numbered the sheets, with the exception of the only sheet dealing with a genus (Raja) instead of a species. Sheets 67, 390, 393 and 395 (thus numbered) are lacking, being replaced by old photocopies, 15 sheets have an A added (69A, 166A, 167A, 171A, 189A, 198A, 236A [apparently a replacement for 236], 260A, 279A, 346A, 389A, 390A, 391A, 392A, 393A). with the exception of 236A these are second leaves to species represented on two leaves). Not present are no.'s 320, 324, 375. according a pencilled note in the index booklet, these were never published. Indeed, these numbers do not appear in the index. The work was terminated (not completed) after the death of the editor, the French zoologist, marine biologist and malacologist Louis Marie Adolphe Olivier Édouard Joubin (1861-1935). In all there is one genus leaf, and 415 species on 429 leaves, but the last leaf, numbered 418, deals with Branchiostoma lanceolatum, which is not a fish. Therefore the total number of different fish species treated seems to be 414, including small, rare, and deeper-water species. Instead of the projected 15, 18 issues were published, followed by a printed index of 23 pp. (dated 1938) Several leaves a bit soiled at edges, otherwise a very good, clean set. Rare. Not in any major bibliography.