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INFORMATION FOR CONTRIBUTORS

Content.-The Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington contains papers bearing on systematics in the biological sciences (botany, zoology, and paleontology), and notices of business transacted at meetings of the Society. Except at the direction of the Council, only manuscripts by Society members will be accepted. Papers are published in English (except for Latin diagnoses/descriptions of plant taxa), with an Abstract in an alternate language when appropriate.


Submission of manuscripts.-Manuscripts should be submitted electronically in MSWord to the Editor, Dr. Stephen L. Gardiner, at sgardine@brynmawr.edu. Alternatively, manuscripts on diskettes or CDs may be sent to him by mail or courier to Department of Biology, Bryn Mawr College, 101 N. Merion Ave., Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 U.S.A., telephone (610) 526-5094, fax (610) 526-5094. All manuscripts must be complete and all components, text, tables, figure captions, and figures, must be submitted in electronic format. Do not send original paper figures. Mailing and email addresses of the corresponding author must be clearly indicated. All communication about the manuscript will be by email.


Presentation.-Clarity of presentation, and requirements of taxonomic and nomenclatural procedures necessitate consistency in the organization of papers. Telegraphic style is recommended for descriptions and diagnoses. The style for the Proceedings is described in "GUIDELINES FOR MANUSCRIPTS for Publications of the BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON," a supplement to Volume 114, number 4, December 2001. Authors are encouraged to consult this article before manuscript preparation. Copies of the article are available from the Editor or any Associate Editor or click here to download a PDF of this document.


The establishment of new taxa must conform with the requirements of appropriate international codes of nomenclature. Decisions of the Editor about style are also guided by the General Recommendations (Appendix E) of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. When appropriate, accounts of new taxa must cite a type specimen deposited in an institutional collection.

Review.-One of the Society's aims is to give its members an opportunity for prompt publication of their shorter contributions. Manuscripts are reviewed by a board of Associate Editors and appropriate referees.

Proofs.-Proofs will arrive as an attachment to an e-mail message. Please check the proofs and inform the Editor of necessary changes promptly. If corrections are few, please inform the Editor in an e-mail message of what is needed. If corrections are major, please mail or fax (610 526-5086) revised pages to the Editor, or contact the Editor for other instructions. With the proofs, you will receive other PDFs of payment and reprint order forms. Please complete these forms and return them to the Editor by mail, fax, or electronically, promptly, even if you are not ordering reprints.

Publication charges.-The Society is a non-profit organization with limited funds. Depending on financial resources, the Society may subsidize up to 12 pages per author per year (one author per paper). The 12-page waiver is not automatic with membership but must be justified in a request to the Editor when a manuscript is accepted. Even with a waiver, the author will be required to pay $5.00 per author alteration in proofs of five or more and the costs of reprints and PDF files.

Costs.-Printed pages @ $65.00 each, color figures @ $600 each. Figure remakes at the proof stage are $25.00 for black and white line drawings, $30.00 for halftones, and $150.00 for color figures.