Bulletin of the Florida Museum

Bulletin Manuscript Preparation

Instructions For Authors

Format - The Bulletin uses the format described below. We suggest authors consult recent numbers (2010 and forward) of the Bulletin if there are questions about format and style. All taxonomic papers must adhere to the most recent rules established by the appropriate international code of systematic nomenclature.

Manuscripts must initially be submitted to the editor in electronic form either as email attachments, via FTP, or on CD. Text, appendices, tables, and figure captions must be in Microsoft Word format saved in a single file. Each figure should be saved as its own file (acceptable formats include high-resolution JPEG, TIFF, and Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator). The names of all files should be formatted for use on Microsoft Windows/PC computers and end in the correct three letter extension (e.g., *.doc; *.tif). The cover letter must contain the names and email addresses of three or more suggested reviewers and any other information the author(s) wish to provide the editorial committee.. The resolution of figures in the submitted manuscript need not be as great as those required for the final published version (see below), but must be sufficient to show the editors and reviewers the features described in the text and figure captions. If on-line supplemental materials are to be included, copies of these must also be provided in the most appropriate format (as text, images, video, etc.) as digital files.

Specific instructions follow for formatting general layout, text, figures and tables, references, literature cited, and supplemental materials:

• The manuscript must be formatted for pages measuring 8½ inches (21.59 cm) by 11 inches (27.94 cm).
• All margins should be at least 1-inch (25 mm) wide and the right margin is not justified. Text in the submitted manuscript should not be divided into two or more columns (except in tables).
• Except as noted below, use Times New Roman font and 12 point size for all text, including table and figure captions, appendices, and reference citations. If necessary to fit within margins, text in tables can be at 10 point size. All text is doubled spaced throughout the manuscript, including table and figure captions. Text in tables may be single spaced.
• Page numbers must be inserted at the top right of all pages. If supplemental materials are included, their pages should be numbered separately, starting with S1, then S2, and so on.
• Figures and tables must be numbered consecutively as they are cited in the text. Each figure and table must be specifically identified and cited at least once in the text, or in the caption of a different table or figure.
• Measurements should be in metric units. In rare cases when English or local equivalent units are needed, they must appear in parentheses after the metric value, e.g., 3.3 cm (1.3 inches).
• Standard spelling is American English. Each sentence should be followed by two blank spaces. In lists of three or more items, separate them by commas and a comma should precede the word "and" or "or". For example, "red, white, and blue…"

In most cases the parts of the manuscript should be as follows:

a. Title Page - A separate page with the title, name(s) and complete mailing address(es) of author(s). E-mail address(es) should be set off in brackets (e.g., <fiction@flmnh.ufl.edu>). Numeric footnotes linking authors' names and addresses should be in superscript. Title of the paper and names of authors should be in all capitals and centered.

b. Abstract - A separate page with 300 words or less summarizing the paper. A list of five to seven key words or short phrases should follow the abstract. All new taxonomic names must be listed in the abstract, with n. sp. or n. gen. or other appropriate abbreviation following the name.

c. Body - Start the body of text on a separate page from the abstract. Indent the first line of each paragraph by the same distance, between 0.3 and 0.5 inches. The first mention in the text of a binomial species name or trinomial subspecies name may include the taxonomic authority and the year of publication [e.g., Tapirus veroensis Sellards 1918, or Notogillia wetherbyi (Dall 1865) with author name and date in parentheses if species was originally described in a different genus]. This is especially encouraged in fields of study which traditionally use the author and publication date after species and subspecies, such as malacology, entomology, or invertebrate paleontology. A reference need not be included in the literature cited section when author and date are given only as authority for a taxonomic name.

In all works, the full generic name and species epithet must be written out each time the name first appears in a paragraph. The generic name may be abbreviated in the remainder of that paragraph as follows: N. wetherbyi. In addition, the first use of a new taxonomic name should be in bold, and, if the name of a genus, species, or subspecies, in italics (e.g., Sphaerodactylus fantasticus ligniservulus, n. ssp.). Formal names of genera, subgenera, species, and subspecies must be in italics (not underlined). The word "Figure" is spelled out when used as part of a sentence, but abbreviated to "Fig." or "Figs." when used within parentheses (e.g., Figs. 1-2 or Fig. 3C). References in the text should give the surname of the author(s) followed immediately by the year of publication and not separated with a comma: for one author (Smith 1999), for two authors (Schultz & Whitacre 1999), and for more than two (Britt et al. 1999). When a literature citation is used as part of a sentence, use "and" instead of the ampersand symbol (&), e.g., "Schultz and Whitacre (1999) stated that..." If several publications of the same author are cited, commas should appear between the dates (King 1992, 1994a, 1994b). If different authors are cited, they should be separated by semi-colons (Brown 2002; Clench 2003) and listed in chronologic order. For a reference to a specific page or pages in published work, use the form (Smith 1998:3-4) with no space between the colon and page number(s). For reference to a specific figure, table, or appendix in a published work, use the format (Jones 1990:fig. 2; Jones et al. 1995:table 3).

• Primary headings are to be centered on page and set in all caps, not in bold or italics (MATERIALS AND METHODS).
• Secondary headings are left justified and set in large and small caps, not in bold or italics (VERTEBRAL STEOLOGY). If necessary, secondary subheadings are to be left justified, and formatted as the first words in the paragraph that follows, but set off in italics and followed with a period (e.g. GEOGRAPHY: The Great Hungarian Plain.).
• Tertiary headings should normally only be used in systematic descriptions, for sections such as referred specimens, type locality, and diagnosis. They should appear in the same font as the paragraph that follows, with only the first letter of nouns and adjectives capitalized, indented the same distance as the first lines of other paragraphs, and followed with a period and a 2-em dash. For example,
  
  Type Locality.— Gainesville, 3.7 km SW of...

Acknowledgments are placed before Literature Cited section.

d. Literature Cited - Start this section on a new page with a primary heading of LITERATURE CITED. Authors' names that are repeated in subsequent cited publications must be listed in full and are not indicated by a line or series of dashes. Only papers cited in the text are listed in the Literature Cited section. All authors' last names must be given in full. Initials are used for first and middle names. When listing names of multiple authors in the literature cited section, use an ampersand (&) rather than "and" prior to name of last co-author. Book titles and names of journals and publishers are not italicized and fully spelled out (not abbreviated). Non-English titles and names should be listed in the original language if it uses the Roman alphabet and should not be translated; transliterate using standard methods titles and names in non-Roman languages such as Russian or Chinese. If identical articles are available in printed and on-line form, cite the printed version. Each citation must be complete and in the following hanging indent formats:

Articles from Printed Periodicals:

Article from Online Periodical with DOI:

Article from Online Periodical without DOI:

Book:

Individual Article in an Edited Volume:

Dissertation:

Technical Report:

Citations are listed in alphabetical order by the name of the first author, then by the names of other authors (if any), and then by date. For example, a citation by Smith, J. L. is placed before those by Smith, S. R., and Smith, J. L. 1999 precedes Smith, J. L. 2003. It is the author's responsibility to make sure listed dates and page numbers are correct.

"In press" citations can be made in the text only if they have been formally accepted by the editor of the journal or volume in which they will be published. Manuscripts "under review" or "in preparation" can not be cited; use personal communication instead (e.g., R. G. Smith pers. comm.). Published abstracts can be cited.

e. Appendices - If used, appendices should be placed after the Literature Cited section, and each one started on a new page. Appendices can be in text or table format. They must be cited at least once in the text. If more than one appendix is used, they should be distinguished by consecutive Arabic numerals (Appendix 1, Appendix 2, etc.).

f. Tables - Each table starts on a separate page and tables are numbered with Arabic numerals. Each table has a brief caption placed at the top of the table. Avoid vertical lines or rules in the tables. Text size in table is 10 or 12 point. Extend large tables onto additional pages when necessary rather than shrinking font size below 10 point.

g. Figure Captions - Captions should be placed on separate page(s), following the tables. Figures are identified with Arabic numerals. Individual components of a multi-part figure are identified with capital letters (A, B, C, etc.). Abbreviations used in figures should be defined in the captions of the first figure in which they occur. Their use in later figures can be satisfied by referring to the figure in which they first appeared. For example, in the caption of Figure 7, there may be the line "Abbreviations as in Figure 5" which then refers the reader to where the abbreviations are defined.

h. Figures - All graphic images, illustrations, photographs, and half-tones are referred to as figures. Figures can be in black and white or grayscale. Publication of color illustrations is allowed but with all extra costs funded by the author(s). [An optional, free method for color illustrations is to include them in the on-line supplemental materials (see below)]. Following acceptance for publication, figures must be supplied as TIFF or PhotoShop formatted files at 300 dots per inch (dpi) or higher resolution for printing. It is suggested that black-and-white graphics or line art with fine lines or where detail is desired should be created and saved at very high resolutions, e.g., 1200 dpi.

A scale bar must be in the figure if size is important. If the background of a photograph is not desired, the background should be masked or made transparent, especially those of specimens. A white background is preferred, except in the case of extremely light-colored specimens, when a black background should be used.

Graphics and line art should be formatted as black (or shades of grey) on a white background. All text in the image must be in Arial or a similar sans serif font in medium weight (bold for small type that prints white on a black background or black on a white background). Lettering must be not less than 2 mm high in the figure at printed scale.

All figures should be submitted at publication size in either one column (3.3 inches or 8.25 cm) or full page (7 inches or 17.75 cm) width. Maximum height possible is 9 inches (22.86 cm). Figures that are too wide for a single column and not wide enough for two columns must be resized, so that page space is used efficiently.

i. Supplemental Materials - Supplemental materials will not be included in the printed version of the article, and will only be available on-line. They may include, but are not limited to, video or audio materials, description of detailed laboratory methods, extensive lists of specimens or descriptions of character states, and additional figures (including those in color). If used, citations to the URL of the supplemental materials must occur within the regular text. Authors considering using this option are urged to consult with the editor.

Proofs - Page proofs will be sent to the first or corresponding author to check for errors and must be returned to the managing editor within 5 working days.

Costs and Page charges - The author(s) are responsible for charges incurred for all alterations made on page proofs, other than correcting errors introduced in the typesetting. Color illustrations will incur an extra cost to the author(s), except for those in the supplemental materials. Papers in which none of the authors has an affiliation with the Florida Museum of Natural History will require payment of complete page charges by the author(s). An estimate will be sent by the editor upon submission of the manuscript. The Florida Museum will send an invoice to the first or designated corresponding author for all charges upon acceptance of the final proofs. Authors affiliated with the Florida Museum of Natural History with available funds from grants or other sources to pay for publications costs are urged to pay partial page charges.

Reprints - The author(s) will receive five paper copies of the article and a high resolution PDF file of the article free of charge. Order forms for additional printed copies of the article are sent to the first or designated corresponding author with the page proofs. He/she is responsible for placing all orders for reprints when the page proofs are returned.

Questions regarding manuscript preparation may be directed to:

Managing Editor
Bulletin of the FLMNH
University of Florida
P.O. Box 117800
Gainesville FL 32611-7800, U.S.A.
Fax: 352-846-0287
E-mail: bulletin@flmnh.ufl.edu

Revised September 22, 2010