David Sands' Catfishes of the World Question

[unblinded]

I haven't been able to find much info on these books online and I'm looking to buy a set but had a question. What's the difference between the paperback versions I'm seeing versus the looseleaf versions?

[Richard B]

Loose leaf were updated by a few supplements. Don't think others were?

[Jools]

That's right. When buying loose leaf, check if supplements included. Not all volumes have supplements IIRC.

Jools

[Dave Rinaldo]

That's right. When buying loose leaf, check if supplements included. Not all volumes have supplements IIRC.

Jools

I've always wondered about this.

My loose leaf set only has supplements for Volume 1 Callichthydae and Volume 2 Mochokidae.

[The.Dark.One]

I have them all but from memory Vol 1 had about 5 supplements, all others had supplements too but can't remember off the top of my head how many each.

[lfinley58]

Hi all.

Below I am "reprinting" verbatim a piece that I did on COTW (and its supplements) by David Sands. It should be, to a point, of help in figuring out whether a particular volume in the set is complete. The caveat is that this piece was initially written 10 years ago. While it is still basically correct (again to a point) there is an unknown factor. A few years back someone had told me that David had planned on doing some additional supplement sheets beyond those listed below. Whether this ever happened, I do not know. Maybe a bibliophile from the U.K. (or elsewhere) can provide some information in this area. A note also on volume availability is needed. Just consider such comments as moot in that I have to state that I am currently unaware of what might be available in unsold "new" stock.
Note: I do mention in the piece that a more comprehensive article on the topic was to follow. This did not happen. But, who knows, maybe this thread will offer incentive to revisit the topic.

Lee F.

Regarding The Supplements To David Sands’
“Catfishes Of The World”

By Lee Finley

Without question, no catfish library may be considered complete unless it contains the five volumes that combined make up “Catfishes Of The World” published in Great Britain by David D. Sands. Although the books were also published in a softcover bound format, this article will only address the loose-leaf format and the supplements produced for them. (The bound volumes contain the same material as in the original loose-leaf volumes, but of course do not allow for supplement insertion.)
To lay the groundwork, listed below are the five volumes with their year of publication and the subject matter covered:
Volume One - 1983 - Callichthyidae (Corydoras and relatives).
Volume Two - 1983 - Mochokidae (Synodontis and relatives).
Volume Three - 1984 - Auchenipteridae and Pimelodidae.
Volume Four - 1984 - Aspredinidae, Doradidae and Loricariidae.
Volume Five - 1985 - Bagridae and others. (Covers catfishes not addressed in previous volumes.)
(Note: Volume One and Volume Two (first editions) are out-of-print and only available from the used book trade. A revised, second edition of Volume One was published in 1990, and this is still available.)
What is less appreciated, and somewhat a source of confusion, is that Sands has also produced to date a total of nine supplements for inclusion into the master loose-leaf volumes. The impact of these supplements is substantial. For example, the first edition of Volume One contains 118 pages. If you take this as a base and then count the pages involved in the supplements produced, the total number of pages rises to 304! This makes the (to date) complete Volume One over two and a half times as large as the original presentation.
To try to help anyone having volumes in this set to sort out the situation of the supplements, what follows is a listing by volume of the supplements that have been published. Their year of publication is noted and it is also noted whether they are out of print or still available. There are a number of irregularities in the supplements (e.g. when all of the supplements are in place, Volume One has three pages that are numbered “68C”), but these are not noted and will be addressed in a later article. Where necessary, additional information to help identify the supplements will be noted. Mention should also be made to check both sides of the supplement index sheets. This is because different designations may be given on each side of the page. For example, in the full Volume Four supplement, the side of the sheet listing the contents notes “Volume Four... Supplements, September 1985” while on the reverse it is noted “Volume Four: Supplements, (first set) September 1985”. This may be splitting hairs, but in that I am attempting to make the supplements easily identifiable I am using the most complete citation. Check both sides of the supplement index sheets to be sure.

Volume One
1. The first set of supplements are dated 1983 and are designated as “Supplements Corydoras”. Out-of-Print.
2. The second set is noted “Volume One: Supplements (Second Set)” and is dated 1984. Out-of-print. (Apparently a few incomplete sets are available.)
3. The third set is noted “Volume One: Supplements (Third Set)” and is dated “September, 1985”. Available.
4. The fourth set is noted “Volume One: Supplements (Fourth Set)” and is dated 1987. Both March and April are noted for the month. Available.
Volume Two
1. The first set is noted as “Volume Two: Supplements 1984”. Available.
2. The second set is noted as “Volume Two: Supplements 1985, Second Set”. Available.
Volume Three
1. The only full set published is noted as “Volume Three: Supplements (First Set) September 1985”. Available.
Volume Four
1. The only full set published is noted as “Volume Four: Supplements (First Set) September 1985”. Available.
Volume Five
No full set of supplements published.

And last but not least:
A supplement designated as “Supplements 1990”. This is the last of the supplements to be published and contains sheets for each of the five volumes. Only one index sheet is included with the set, so it is advisable to photocopy it four times for inclusion in each of the binders. Some of the supplements in this set are without page numbers, so inclusion in the master volumes may be somewhat problematic. (This will also be addressed in the above mentioned later article.) Available.
Should anyone have additional problems identifying the supplements, please feel free to contact me. I say this based on the situation of picking up a used volume that contained the supplement sheets but lacked the index. Without my full set to work from, I’m sure I would have been lost.

(Note: Initial work on this article was done a while ago. Consequently, availability on the main volumes of this work and the follow-up supplements may vary somewhat.)

[Richard B]

Crikey - i'll have to check my copies to see if i have them all!!!

[lfinley58]

Hi all.

A quick follow up regarding supplements to the Corydoras, et al. volume: Steve mentioned this volume as having "...about 5 supplements...". Steve, in that the last supplement group ("1990"), which contained sheets for all books, was almost half Corydoras are you possibly considering this as a fifth supplement? Thanks for a reply...it would be of interest to know if there was in fact a full supplement number five for this volume.

Lee F.

[unblinded]

Thanks for all the feedback and thanks for pointing me in the right direction. My OCD won't let me buy the paperback versions with no supplements, even though they're cheaper.

[The.Dark.One]

Vol 1 had 4 specific supplements then a set came out that covered all volumes so in effect 5 supplements.

[lfinley58]

Hi Steve and all.

Steve, thanks very much for checking your Corydoras volume for the supplement situation. Your comment does confirm what I wrote in the article and the follow up comment re the Corydoras content in the "all volumes" set of supplements.

Lee F.