I am delighted to announce thatBMC Zoology,一个新的开放获取,同行评议期刊within theBMCserieslaunches today.BMC Zoologywill increase and disseminate zoological knowledge through the publication of original research, methodology, database, software and debate articles.
It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change (Charles Darwin)
作为人类，我们一直对与过去和现在共享世界的其他物种产生了极大的兴趣。几个世纪以来，我们已经驯化了，甚至建立了非常特殊的纽带。我们只能估计与我们在我们的星球上共存的数百万个物种，但我们确实知道大多数人仍然有待描述。
Aims and scope
With the launch ofBMC Zoology,BMCseries aims to complement its current portfolio of animal research to provide a forum for new species descriptions and original research that further our understanding of the world’s fauna. WithBMC Ecology,BMC Evolutionary Biology,BMC Veterinary Research, and nowBMC Zoology,BMC-series portfolio can offer authors a home for all research manuscripts that report scientifically valid results on all components of our planet’s rich diversity.
BMC Zoologywill serve as a resource for researchers, students, organizations and charities with an interest in zoology and conservation, freely, openly and permanently accessible. Like all journals in theBMCseries,BMC Zoologywill not make editorial decisions on the basis of perceived interest of a study or its likely impact, but rather on the basis of its scientific soundness.
该期刊非常适合在大型长期数据集上进行分析。在线性质BMC Zoologymakes it well suited to presenting large amounts of data or copiously illustrated articles (e.g. taxonomic revisions). We also welcome manuscripts that contribute to the science-policy dialog by publishing science-based commentaries aimed at influencing policy makers for which the debate article type will be the ideal forum.
BMC Zoologyhas seven editorial sections:
- Systematics and biogeography
- Biotic interactions
- Cognition, sensory biology, signaling and communication
- 保护和野生动植物监测
- Life history
- 比较生理学和形态
- Sociobiology, parental and sexual behavior
Editorial sections
More than 2000 years ago, Aristotle took notes on animal observations and even established classifications. We still classify animals today and the scientific discipline is called taxonomy. Studies related to the description of new zoological taxa, their evolutionary interrelationships and geographic distribution will be considered in thesystematics and biogeography部分。作为路易斯·马拉巴巴, Associate Editor forBMC Zoologyexplains, the journal considers a range of studies from simple descriptions of new species to new classifications based on evolutionary relationships; or they may deal with the impact of newly explored characters on our understanding of the evolution and distribution of any taxonomic group of animals.
Thebiotic interactions部分，由部分编辑领导Serge Morand, welcomes studies on parasitism, symbiosis and immunity. Parasite diversity appears considerable although often cryptic. Studies are needed to investigate the co-diversification and co-interactions of hosts and their parasites. Important questions remain regarding the host factors that may explain the diversity and diversification of parasites, and correlatively the effects of parasitism and symbiosis on the diversity and diversification of their hosts including the evolution of their life-history traits.
Thecognition, sensory biology, signaling and communicationsection ofBMC Zoology特别受欢迎的手稿现在吗valid theoretical developments as well as rigorous empirical studies that draw together different aspects of cognition and sensory biology. As Section EditorBrock Fentonpoints out, making connections to similar studies with other subject species will enhance the readership and impact of the articles.
Due to the variety of animals, zoology is a very broad field and many zoologists specialize in the study of a particular functional, structural or ecological aspect by specializing in one particular group of animals, or both. Irrespective of their specialization, most zoologists also have a strong interest inconservation and wildlife monitoring。作为Laurence Packer, Section Editor forBMC Zoologyexplains, our planet is entering the 6th mass extinction as a result of human impacts on all aspects of the world’s animal and plant life. Human survival depends upon the maintenance of biological diversity in ways that are often complex and poorly understood. Yet it is precisely this understanding that is required to permit conservation of as much of our remaining biological diversity as possible.
我们的星球正在进入第六次大规模灭绝 - 人类的生存取决于维持生物多样性
Thomas Flatt,Section Editor for thelife historysection describes his field as one that seeks to explain how natural selection ‘designs’ organisms to achieve and optimize reproductive success under specific environmental conditions and given intrinsic organismal constraints. Typical life history traits include age and size at maturity, number, size and sex ratio of offspring, age-specific schedules of fertility and survival, and lifespan among others. These traits are key components of fitness and thus direct targets of natural selection.
Many zoologists focus on how cells, organs and organisms communicate by understanding the informational flow within and between cells, tissues, organs and organisms. AsBernhard Lieb, Associate Editor for thecomparative physiology and morphology部分解释说，动物生理学的一个主要研究主题仍然是关于如何实现稳态的问题。体内平衡意味着保持舒适和恒定，这对于动物意味着探索新的能力worlds和niches。
One aspect we have not yet mentioned is research on the behavior of animals which is often the first and most sensitive response of an organism to changes in its environment. AsHerbert Hoi，部分编辑器sociobiology, parental and sexual behaviorsection explains, investigations on how animals adapt to new conditions and their resulting behavior is timely and important. We can imagine that children who consume large amounts of unhealthy food and grow up without forming social bonds through the interaction with other children may display unwanted behavioral traits as adults. In non-human animals, increasing or decreasing population densities, rapid changes in physical and social environments, human disturbance and rapid changes in their parasite community or disease risk have an impact on behavior.
Launch articles
BMC Zoologyhas published its first set of articles today which is an exciting mix of original research and review articles:
- Sonia Kleindorfer and Rachael Dudaniec review the host-parasite ecology, behavior and genetics of the introduced fly parasitePhilornis downsi和its host Darwin’s finch (view article)
- Edward Narayan and Michelle Williams review the dynamics of physiological impacts of environmental stressors on Australian marsupials with a focus on the koala (view article)
- Jan Terje Lifjeld and colleagues present an original research article on species-level divergences in multiple functional traits between the two endemic subspecies of Blue Chaffinches on the Canary Islands (view article)
- J. Antonio Baeza调查并发表了一篇有关主动父母护理，生殖表现和一种新颖的鸡蛋捕食者的研究文章，影响了加勒比海刺龙虾的生殖投资（view article)
- Marcelo Rodrigues describes new research on the cellular basis of bioadhesion of the freshwater polyp Hydra (view article)
- 丹尼尔·沙恩（Daniel Shain）的原始研究文章描述了一种新的广阔物种，通过研究欧亚药物的历史生物地理学（view article)
- Naomi Prosser investigated the body condition scoring of Bornean banteng in logged forests (view article)
I invite you to browse through these articles on theBMC Zoologywebsite。我的同事Yaiza delPozoMartín总结了Sonia Kleindorfer和Jan Terje Lifjeld的进化鸟类学文章another blogwhich I highly recommend to the interested reader. The launch ofBMC Zoologyis accompanied by aneditorial由编辑撰写，我们为期刊提供了全面的介绍。
I would like to encourage all those with an interest in the journal to get in touch with the Editor and to provide us with feedback and suggestions on how to improve the journal as we continuously strive to better serve the community. I hope you will find this first set of articles a pleasant and worthwhile read.
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