Explore & Discover Scientific Journals

Previously a supplement to Proceedings B, and launched as an independent journal in 2005, Biology Letters is a primarily online, peer-reviewed journal that publishes short, high-quality articles, reviews and opinion pieces from across the biological sciences. The scope of Biology Letters is vast - publishing high-quality research in any area of the biological sciences. However, we have particular strengths in the biology, evolution and ecology of whole organisms. We also publish in other areas of biology, such as molecular ecology and evolution, environmental science, and phylogenetics.

The aim, scope, and format of Evolutionary Biology will be based on the following principles: Evolutionary Biology will publish original articles and reviews that address issues and subjects of core concern in evolutionary biology. All papers must make original contributions to our understanding of the evolutionary process. The journal will remain true to the original intent of the original series to provide a place for broad syntheses in evolutionary biology. Articles will contribute to this goal by defining the direction of current and future research and by building conceptual links between disciplines. In articles presenting an empirical analysis, the results of these analyses must be integrated within a broader evolutionary framework. Authors are encouraged to submit papers presenting novel conceptual frameworks or major challenges to accepted ideas. While brevity is encouraged, there is no formal restriction on length for major articles. The journal aims to keep the time between original submission and appearance online to within four months and will encourage authors to revise rapidly once a paper has been submitted and deemed acceptable.

It covers both micro- and macro-evolution of all types of organisms. The aim of the Journal is to integrate perspectives across molecular and microbial evolution, behaviour, genetics, ecology, life histories, development, palaeontology, systematics and morphology.

Biochemical Systematics and Ecology is devoted to the publication of original papers and reviews, both submitted and invited, in two subject areas: I) the application of biochemistry to problems relating to systematic biology of organisms (biochemical systematics); II) the role of biochemistry in interactions between organisms or between an organism and its environment (biochemical ecology). In the Biochemical Systematics subject area, comparative studies of the distribution of (secondary) metabolites within a wider taxon (e.g. genus or family) are welcome. Comparative studies, encompassing multiple accessions of each of the taxa within their distribution are particularly encouraged. Welcome are also studies combining classical chemosystematic studies (such as comparative HPLC-MS or GC-MS investigations) with (macro-) molecular phylogenetic studies. Studies that involve the comparative use of compounds to help differentiate among species such as adulterants or substitutes that illustrate the applied use of chemosystematics are welcome. In contrast, studies solely employing macromolecular phylogenetic techniques (gene sequences, RAPD studies etc.) will be considered out of scope. Discouraged are manuscripts that report known or new compounds from a single source taxon without addressing a systematic hypothesis. Also considered out of scope are studies using outdated and hard to reproduce macromolecular techniques such as RAPDs in combination with standard chemosystematic techniques such as GC-FID and GC-MS.

Evolutionary Ecology is a concept-oriented journal of biological research at the interface of ecology and evolution. We publish papers that therefore integrate both fields of research: research that seeks to explain the ecology of organisms in the context of evolution, or patterns of evolution as explained by ecological processes. The journal publishes original research and discussion concerning the evolutionary ecology of organisms. These may include papers addressing evolutionary aspects of population ecology, organismal interactions and coevolution, behaviour, life histories, communication, morphology, host-parasite interactions and disease ecology, as well as ecological aspects of genetic processes. The objective is to promote the conceptual, theoretical and empirical development of ecology and evolutionary biology; the scope extends to any organism or system. In additional to Original Research articles, we publish Review articles that survey recent developments in the field of evolutionary ecology; Ideas & Perspectives articles which present new points of view and novel hypotheses; and Comments on articles recently published in Evolutionary Ecology or elsewhere. We also welcome New Tests of Existing Ideas - testing well-established hypotheses but with broader data or more methodologically rigorous approaches; - and shorter Natural History Notes, which aim to present new observations of organismal biology in the wild that may provide inspiration for future research. As of 2018, we now also invite Methods papers, to present or review new theoretical, practical or analytical methods used in evolutionary ecology. Students & Early Career Researchers: We particularly encourage, and offer incentives for, submission of Reviews, Ideas & Perspectives, and Methods papers by students and early-career researchers (defined as being within one year of award of a PhD degree) – see Students & Early Career Researchers

Journal of Molecular Evolution covers experimental, computational, and theoretical work aimed at deciphering features of molecular evolution and the processes bearing on these features, from the initial formation of macromolecular systems through their evolution at the molecular level, the co-evolution of their functions in cellular and organismal systems, and their influence on organismal adaptation, speciation, and ecology. Topics addressed include the evolution of informational macromolecules and their relation to more complex levels of biological organization, including populations and taxa, as well as the molecular basis for the evolution of ecological interactions of species and the use of molecular data to infer fundamental processes in evolutionary ecology. This coverage accommodates such subfields as new genome sequences, comparative structural and functional genomics, population genetics, the molecular evolution of development, the evolution of gene regulation and gene interaction networks, and in vitro evolution of DNA and RNA, molecular evolutionary ecology, and the development of methods and theory that enable molecular evolutionary inference, including but not limited to, phylogenetic methods.

Insect Systematics & Evolution (ISE) publishes original papers on all aspects of systematic entomology and the evolutionary history of both extant and extinct insects and related groups. Priority is given to taxonomic revisions and phylogenetic studies employing morphological and molecular data. ISE also welcomes reviews and syntheses that can appeal to a wide community of systematic entomologists. Single species descriptions, regional checklists, and phylogenetic studies based on few taxa or single molecular markers will generally not be accepted.

TAXON is the bi-monthly journal of the International Association for Plant Taxonomy and is devoted to systematic and evolutionary biology with emphasis on plants and fungi. It is published bimonthly by the International Bureau for Plant Taxonomy and Nomenclature, c/o Institute of Botany, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, SK-845 23 Bratislava, SLOVAKIA. Details of page charges are given in the Guidelines for authors. Papers will be reviewed by at least two specialists.

Australian Systematic Botany is an international journal devoted to the systematics, taxonomy, and related aspects of biogeography and evolution of all algae, fungi and plants, including fossils. Descriptive taxonomic papers should normally constitute a comprehensive treatment of a group. Short papers on individual species and nomenclatural papers must contain significant new information of broader interest to be considered. The prestigious L.A.S. Johnson Review Series is published. Other review articles will also be considered. All papers are peer reviewed. Australian Systematic Botany is published with the endorsement of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and the Australian Academy of Science.

Plant Systematics and Evolution is an international journal dedicated to publication of peer-reviewed original papers and reviews on plant systematics in the broadest sense. The journal aims to bridge the specific subject areas in plant systematics and evolution, encompassing evolutionary, phylogenetic, genomic and biogeographical studies at the population and higher taxonomic levels. Taxonomic emphasis is on all land plant groups in a wide sense, including fungi and lichens.

Evolutionary Bioinformatics is an open access, peer reviewed international journal focusing on evolutionary bioinformatics. The journal aims to support understanding of organismal form and function through use of molecular, genetic, genomic and proteomic data by giving due consideration to its evolutionary context.

An interdisciplinary journal, Theoretical Population Biology presents articles on theoretical aspects of the biology of populations, particularly in the areas of demography, ecology, epidemiology, evolution, and genetics. Emphasis is on the development of mathematical theory and models that enhance the understanding of biological phenomena. Articles highlight the motivation and significance of the work for advancing progress in biology, relying on a substantial mathematical effort to obtain biological insight. The journal also presents empirical results and computational and statistical methods directly impinging on theoretical problems in population biology.