Instructions to Authors
Table of Contents
- Scope of the Journal
- Manuscript Submission Guide
- Peer Review Process
- Publication and Research Ethics
- Publishing Agreements and Charges
- After Publication
- Contact Us
Scope of the Journal
The Journal of Evolutionary Biology (JEB) is a peer-reviewed, international journal owned by the European Society of Evolutionary Biology. The journal seeks to publish articles that advance the understanding of the evolutionary process and are of interest to a broad evolutionary readership. As such, the journal will prioritise robust and well-executed studies that ask novel questions and/or provide new insights, generalisable across taxonomic groups. The journal is happy to publish negative results, as long as these provide robust new findings, but will not normally publish studies that replicate previous results in the same or different taxa (unless doing so provides genuinely novel insights).
JEB considers submissions describing research from across the field of evolutionary biology, including evolutionary genetics and genomics, molecular evolution and phylogenetics, life histories, evolutionary ecology, development, or morphology. The journal covers both micro- and macro-evolution, as well as empirical, computational, and theoretical work.
The Editorial Board reflects the journal's multidisciplinary remit and its international reach.
How we publish
The Journal of Evolutionary Biology is a peer-reviewed journal publishing 12 issues per year online.
Once a paper is accepted and the publishing agreement is signed, the Journal will publish the Accepted Manuscript version of the paper (before copyediting and review of the final proof) within one week on the Advance Access page. This will be replaced in Advance Access with the Version of Record of the paper (after copyediting and proof review process) when it is available. The Version of Record will be removed from Advance Access when it is published into an issue. Substantial changes to the published Accepted Manuscript may require a correction notice. The Version of Record requires a correction notice for any changes after it is published, even if it is not yet placed in an issue. See the definitions of the Version of Record and other versions of the paper for more details.
Manuscript Submission Guide
How to submit
Submission to JEB is via ScholarOne: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jeb. If you have not published with JEB before, you will need to create an account. More information is available on the ScholarOne Manuscripts FAQ and help page. Questions about the submission process can be sent to the editorial office.
The Journal of Evolutionary Biology is a Peer Community In-friendly journal, and we are happy to accept the submission of articles that have received reviews and a recommendation from PCI. Please indicate this in your cover letter and provide links to the recommendation. We will then offer a decision within 7-10 working days as 1) Acceptance or Minor Revision with no further peer review, 2) further peer review required, or 3) Reject.
We also accept submissions directly from the bioRxiv preprint server. If your manuscript is already uploaded to bioRxiv you can transfer your manuscript directly to JEB meaning that authors will not have to spend time entering author information etc. into our submission system.
Article types
This journal publishes the following article types:
Research Article
These are reports of new research findings or conceptual analyses that make a significant contribution to the field. The maximum word count in 7,500.
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Materials and methods
- Results
- Discussion
- Conclusions (optional)
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Short Communication
These are reports of new research findings or conceptual analyses that make a significant contribution to the field but are presented in a shorter, more focused format. The maximum word count is 4,000.
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Materials and methods
- Results
- Discussion (Results and Discussion may be combined)
- Conclusions (optional)
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Review
These are critical reviews of the literature, including systematic reviews and meta-analyses. The maximum word count is 9,000.
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Manuscript-specific section headings
- Conclusions (optional)
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Methods Article
These are reports of a novel method widely applicable in evolutionary biology. For example, these can introduce a new approach or piece of software. Both computational and “wet-lab” methods are welcomed. The emphasis of the manuscript should be on introducing the method, but examples of applications are welcome. The maximum word count is 7,500.
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Manuscript-specific section headings
- Conclusions (optional)
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Target Review
These are opinion-heavy review articles, typically focusing on areas of broad current interest and controversy. The maximum word count is 9,000. Target Reviews are accompanied by responses in the form of Invited Commentaries.
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Manuscript-specific section headings
- Conclusions (optional)
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Invited Commentary
These are comments and responses that related to articles published in JEB, such as Target Reviews or Research Articles. The maximum word count is 2,000. If you wish to submit a commentary on a JEB paper of any kind, including previously published papers, please contact the editorial office in the first instance.
Each piece should include:
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Forum
These are articles concerning science policy as it relates to the evolutionary biology community, e.g. funding, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, scientific publishing, etc. We accept both evidence-based opinion pieces and articles containing new data and analyses. The maximum word count is 4,000.
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Manuscript-specific section headings
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Perspective Article
Perspective articles provide a platform for authors to present a novel viewpoint on an area or topic of research. Perspectives are more opinion-based than reviews or research articles, but can contain new data. They are not meant as a format to respond to individual pieces of published work (see Commentary for this purpose), their focus should be broader.
The maximum word count is 7500
Each piece should include:
- Abstract—maximum word count: 250
- Keywords—4 to 10
- Introduction
- Manuscript-specific section headings
- Conclusions (optional)
- References—no limit
- May include tables and figures—no limit
Manuscript preparation instructions
Language
All articles are published in English. We are conscious of the additional effort and obstacles that this imposes on many non-native speakers. As long as the meaning is clear, we are happy to accept submissions of articles whose phrasing reflects the local origin of the authors. Although we are working on solutions, we are currently unable to accept manuscripts that would require significant language editing in order to be peer-reviewed and subsequently publishable.
Where authors consider it desirable, presubmission language editing services are available at a discounted rate from our publisher’s partner Enago, a leading provider of author services. Prospective authors are entitled to a discount of 30% for editing services at Enago, through the OUP-Enago partner page. Edited manuscripts will undergo the regular review process of the Journal.
Abbreviations
Please define nonstandard abbreviations at the first occurrence.
Cover letter
A cover letter to accompany your manuscript is not essential but can be a useful place to draw attention to any additional relevant information that you feel the Editorial Board should be aware of. This might include justification for your preferred or excluded reviewers or expanding on any information in your Conflicts of Interest statement. There is no need to highlight or reiterate the contents/relevance of your manuscript, our editorial assessment is based on your manuscript files alone.
Title page
To facilitate double-anonymous peer review, the title page should be submitted separately from the rest of the manuscript. The title page is the only document that should reveal the identity of the authors. Please include:
- The title of your paper
- All author names and affiliations in the correct order
- Mailing address and email address of one corresponding author
- Acknowledgments section (including all funding sources)
- Ethical approval section (where applicable)
Native language author names
If your paper is published, your name will be displayed online in Latin alphabet characters as provided to us on your manuscript. If you wish for an alternative name also to be displayed (for instance, your name in a different alphabet, or an alternate name by which you are commonly known) please include that name in parentheses, immediately after your Latin-character name in the manuscript. Note that alternative names will be presented as supplied on the OUP website and in the article PDF, but may not be presented in other locations where your published article appears, such as PubMed.
Main text file
This should be a single, line-numbered file including the manuscript text and references. References should be in an "Author, Date" style as opposed to numeric. At first submission, figures and tables can be included in your main text file or uploaded separately (in either case, figure and table legends should be provided in the main text file, labelling should be consistent, and items referred to consecutively in the text). JEB operates a double-anonymous peer review process and it is extremely important that your main manuscript file does not contain author names and affiliations. In line with our double-anonymous policy, please do not include your Data Availability statement or Acknowledgements in your main text file.
Abstracts
Abstracts have a maximum length of 250 words and must not contain reference citations or abbreviations.
Additional language abstracts
We encourage and welcome the publication of additional abstracts in languages other than English, for example in the authors’ native language or that of the region where the work was carried out. Such additional abstracts are considered academic content and presented as part of the article in the HTML and PDF, in addition to the English language abstract. The additional abstract should be compiled by the author and inputted into ScholarOne during submission; it will be published as part of the article both online and within the PDF. Please note that authors are solely responsible for assuring the accuracy of the translated text.
For work from other non-English speaking countries, a foreign-language abstract is encouraged and welcome. It is considered academic content and is presented as part of the article in the HTML and PDF, in addition to the traditional English language abstract. The translated abstract should be compiled by the author and placed after the English abstract in the initial submission; it will be published as part of the article both online and within the PDF. Please note that authors are solely responsible for assuring the accuracy of the translated text.
Acknowledgments and funding
Acknowledgments and funding information should be included in the Acknowledgments section on your title page. Please fully cite any relevant funding information, including specific grant numbers.
Tables
Authors must number all tables (e.g., table 1, table 2, table 3) and reference them within the text. Tables should be supplied in an editable format (such as Microsoft Word), and not embedded as an image file. Avoid excessive formatting such as the use of colour and shading (which are not replicated in the published web version) and the use of tabbed spacing to indicate alignment. Ensure that any formatting or superscript symbols such as asterisks are explained in the table footnote. Provide units in column or row headers, rather than in the table body.
Figures
For production purposes, figures should be submitted in one of the following file formats: .jpeg, .jpg, .tiff, .pdf, or .eps. Images prepared as .bmp, .gif, or .doc/.docx files will not be accepted. You must include figure titles, legends, and captions within the manuscript file—they should not be included in the image files.
Figure files should be named simply to match their citation, eg. fig1.tiff, fig2.eps. You must submit each figure as a single individual image file. Submit all panels of a multi-panel figure as one single figure file; each panel should be labeled with a letter (A, B, C, D, etc.) in the upper-left corner of each panel. Please also ensure you have permission to re-use or adapt any third-party image materials.
Images of maps, charts, graphs, shapes, and diagrams are best rendered digitally as geometric forms called vector graphics. Vector images use mathematical relationships between points and the lines connecting them to describe an image. These file types do not use pixels; therefore resolution does not apply to vector images. Save vector images as .eps or .svg files and embed the fonts.
Images of photographs, paintings, or scans can be provided as raster images. Raster images should be saved as uncompressed .tiff files to avoid quality loss; .jpg/.png file formats are acceptable for raster image but may result in a lower resolution. The resolution of raster files is measured by the number of dots or pixels in a given area, referred to as “dpi” or “ppi.”
- Minimum resolution required for colour half-tones: 300dpi
- Minimum resolution for grayscale half-tones: 600dpi
- Minimum resolution for combination half-tones and line art: 600-900dpi
- Minimum resolution for monochrome line art (complex or finely drawn): 1200dpi
Please also consider accessibility when designing your figure, so that your images can be easily understood by colour-blind and visually-impaired readers. Guidelines for preparing different image-types, including recommendations for colour palettes, colour contrast, image layout, and text accessibility.
Figure accessibility and alt text
Incorporating alt text (alternative text) when submitting your paper helps to foster inclusivity and accessibility. Good alt text ensures that individuals with visual impairments or those using screen readers can comprehend the content and context of your figures. The aim of alt text is to provide concise and informative descriptions of your figure so that all readers have access to the same level of information and understanding, and that all can engage with and benefit from the visual elements integral to scholarly content. Including alt text demonstrates a commitment to accessibility and enhances the overall impact and reach of your work.
Alt text is applicable to all images, figures, illustrations, and photographs.
Alt text is only accessible via e-reader and so it won’t appear as part of the typeset article.
Detailed guidance on how to draft and submit alt text.
Featured images/graphical abstracts
Authors of all article types are encouraged to submit a featured image, also known as a teaser image or TOC image, as part of the article. The featured image may be a figure selected from the article or an image not included in the article itself. “Graphical Abstracts” are also welcomed as featured images and should clearly summarise the focus and findings of the article. Featured images will be presented under the article title in the online Table of Contents (or Advance Access listing) to entice the reader to click through to the article. The featured image can be submitted as a separate file, selecting the appropriate file-type designation in the journal’s online submission system. The file should be clearly named, e.g. featured_image.tiff. See this page for guidance on appropriate file format and resolution for graphics. The author should indicate in the submission system which image (if any) should be presented as the featured image for their article.
References
You may format references in any readable style at submission. You are responsible for the accuracy of reference information. Style files for reference managers are available here.
LaTeX
JEB accepts submission in Latex format; information on LaTeX files and formatting is available here. For authors preparing their manuscripts using LaTeX, a PDF version of the Main Text file should also be included at submission. This file should include line numbers.
Supplementary material
You must submit supplementary material at the same time as the main manuscript.
- Supplementary material must be cited in the text of the main manuscript.
- Supplementary material will be available online only and will not be copyedited or typeset.
- Style and formatting of supplementary material should be consistent with that of the manuscript.
- Supplementary material should be submitted in PDF file format.
Peer Review Process
The Journal operates double-anonymised peer review, meaning that the identity of the authors is hidden from reviewers, and the reviewers’ identities are hidden from the authors. The editors know the identity of both the reviewers and the authors.
Once a submitted manuscript passes initial assessment by one of the Journal’s Handling Editors, it will then be passed to an Associate Editor who will manage peer review and make a recommendation. The Handling Editor then uses the reviewers’ and Handling Editor’s assessments to make the final decision on the submitted manuscript.
During the peer review phase, your manuscript is typically sent to 2 reviewers. You may suggest potential reviewers at submission. However, there is no guarantee the suggested reviewers will be selected by the Journal. At the time of submission, you may request that specific individuals not be used as reviewers of your manuscript. Please do so in the ScholarOne submission portal at the point of submission, along with a brief explanation as to why you want them excluded. However, there is no guarantee these individuals will be excluded by the Journal.
For full details about the peer review process, see Fair editing and peer review or OUP author FAQs.
Manuscript transfer
JEB sends and receives transfers from other journals on related topics published by Oxford University Press. All transfers are sent according to the choice of the authors. Unless a reviewer declines to have their feedback shared, reviewer reports and the original decision letter are included in the transfer, but the reviewer identities are not shared.
Transferred manuscripts may be sent out for additional peer review, and a decision will be made on the manuscript based on the feedback from all reviewers and the judgment of the editorial team.
Appeals
Editorial decisions
JEB operates a rigorous process of article assessment. As a consequence, editors very rarely reverse their original decisions. If you receive a decision to reject your manuscript, you are therefore strongly advised to submit to another journal. However, if you believe that there is a case to be made for a genuine appeal, please follow the instructions below.
Appeals procedure
Authors may appeal their decision within 28 days of receiving it. The appeal should be in the form of an email addressed to the editorial office. The letter should include clear and substantial grounds for the appeal, including specific points of disagreement with the decision; for example, the author may feel there were serious procedural deviations in the reviewing process. At least one other member of our editorial board (not involved in the original decision) will reassess the paper and decide whether the decision should be upheld. You will be informed of the outcome of the appeal within 28 days of receipt of your email. The decision will be final.
Publication and Research Ethics
Authorship
Authorship is limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the design and execution of the work described (see also the section on CRediT below). Any contributors whose participation does not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged but not listed as an author. For a detailed definition of authorship, please see the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) definitions of authors and contributors.
The Journal does not allow ghost authorship, where an unnamed author prepares the article with no credit, or guest/gift authorship, where an author who made little or no contribution is listed as an author. The Journal follows Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidance on investigating and resolving these cases. For more information, please see the OUP Publication Ethics page.
Natural language processing tools driven by artificial intelligence (AI) do not qualify as authors, and the Journal will screen for them in author lists. The use of AI (for example, to help generate content, write code, or process data) should be disclosed both in cover letters to editors and in the Methods or Acknowledgements section of manuscripts. The journal’s editorial board is aware of the additional obstacles that publishing in English presents to non-native speakers. As such the journal is open to AI tools being used to assist with language-editing. However, this should also be clearly disclosed in cover letters and Acknowledgements. Please see the COPE position statement on Authorship and AI for more details.
After manuscript submission, no authorship changes (including the authorship list, author order, and who is designated as the corresponding author) should be made without the approval of the Managing Editor. All co-authors must agree on the change(s). Any dispute over authorship must be resolved among the individuals and their institution(s) before the manuscript can be accepted for publication and neither the Journal nor the publisher may mediate any disputes. If individuals cannot agree on the authorship of a submitted manuscript, contact the editorial office. If an authorship dispute or change arises after a paper is accepted, contact OUP’s Author Support team. COPE provides guidance for authors on resolving authorship disputes.
If you intend to use Read and Publish funding to publish your manuscript under an open access license, note that changing the corresponding author to access those funds is not permissible. For more information on Read and Publish funding, see the open access charges section.
CRediT
The Journal uses the contributor roles taxonomy (CRediT), which allows authors to describe the contributor roles in a standardised, transparent, and accurate way. Authors should choose from the contributor roles outlined on the CRediT website and supply this information upon submission. You may choose multiple contributor roles per author. Any other individuals who do not meet authorship criteria and made less substantive contributions should be listed in your manuscript as non-author contributors with their contributions clearly described. Following manuscript submission, any changes to contributor roles require the approval of the editor.
ORCID
Submitting authors are required to provide an ORCID iD (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) at submission. All other authors are encouraged to provide their ORCID iDs at submission and take advantage of the benefits of participating in ORCID.
If you do not already have an ORCID iD, you can register for free via the ORCID website. As ORCID identifiers are collected, they are included in papers and displayed online, both in the HTML and PDF versions of the publication, in compliance with recommended practice issued by ORCID. ORCID functionality online allows users to link to the ORCID website to view an author’s profile and list of publications. ORCID iDs are displayed on web pages and are sent downstream to third parties in data feeds, where supported.
If you have registered with ORCID, you can associate your ORCID iD with your submission system account by going to your account details, entering your ORCID iD, and validating your details. Learn more about ORCID and how to link it to your account.
Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest
Authors
The Journal requires all authors to disclose any potential conflict of interest at the point of submission within the Conflict of Interest section of the Title Page. It is the responsibility of the corresponding author to ensure that conflicts of interest of all authors are declared to the Journal.
A conflict of interest exists when the position, activities, or relationships of an individual, whether direct or indirect, financial or non-financial, could influence or be seen to influence the opinions or activities of the individual. For more information, refer to OUP’s definition of conflict of interest.
The Journal follows the COPE guidance for any undisclosed conflict of interest that emerges during peer review, production, or after publication.
Peer reviewers
Individuals that have a conflict of interest relating to a submitted manuscript should recuse themselves and will not be assigned to oversee, handle, or peer review the manuscript. If during peer review a reviewer or author becomes aware of a conflict of interest that was not previously known or disclosed they must inform the editorial office immediately.
Editors and editorial board members
At initial submission, the submission system will detect whether an Editor in Chief, Handling Editor or Associate Editor is an author of or contributor to a manuscript. If this is the case, another Editor without a conflict of interest will oversee the peer review and decision-making process.
Previously published material
You should only submit your manuscript(s) to the Journal if:
- It is original work by you and your co-author(s).
- It is not under consideration, in peer review, or accepted for publication in any other publication.
- It has not been published in any other publication.
- It contains nothing abusive, defamatory, derogatory, obscene, fraudulent, or illegal.
For the inclusion of previously published materials within manuscripts, such as tables and figures, please see the Reusing copyrighted materials section.
Preprints
As an author, you retain the right to make an Author’s Original Version (preprint) available through various channels and this does not prevent submission to the Journal. If accepted, the authors are required to update the status of any preprint, including adding your published paper’s DOI. For full details on allowed channels and updating your preprint, please see our Author self-archiving policy.
JEB accepts submissions of articles previously published on preprint servers and submissions can be directly initiated from bioRxiv.
Reusing copyrighted material
As an author, you must obtain permission for any material used within your manuscript for which you are not the rightsholder, including substantial quotations, tables, figures, or images. In seeking permissions for published materials, first contact the publisher rather than the author. For unpublished materials, start by contacting the creator. Copies of each grant of permission should be provided to the editorial office of the Journal. The permissions agreement must include the following:
- Nonexclusive rights to reproduce the material in your paper in The Journal of Evolutionary Biology
- Rights for use in print and electronic format at a minimum, and preferably for use in any form or medium
- Lifetime rights to use the material
- Worldwide English-language rights
If you have chosen to publish under an open access license but have not obtained open access re-use permissions for third-party material contained within the manuscript, this must be stated clearly by supplying a credit line alongside the material with the following information:
- Title of content
- Author, Original publication, year of original publication, by permission of [rightsholder]
- “This [content] is not covered by the terms of the Creative Commons license of this publication. For permission to reuse, please contact the rights holder.”
Our publisher, Oxford University Press, provides detailed Copyright and Permissions Guidelines, and a summary of the fundamental information.
Misconduct
Authors should observe high standards with respect to research integrity and publication ethics as set out by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Falsification or fabrication of data including inappropriate image manipulation, plagiarism, including duplicate publication of the author's own work without proper citation, and misappropriation of work are all unacceptable practices.
Screening for misconduct
Newly submitted manuscripts will be screened using iThenticate to help detect publication misconduct including plagiarism and redundant publication
Making a complaint
Allegations of misconduct, both directly and through social media, are treated seriously and will be investigated in accordance with the relevant COPE guidance. If you wish to make a complaint regarding publication misconduct related to a manuscript published, or under peer-review, in JEB please contact the editorial office in the first instance. Allegations of misconduct both pre- and post-publication will be considered by the Editorial Board. JEB will follow the principles and recommendations of COPE in the event of any alleged research or publication misconduct, including plagiarism or fabrication or falsification of results.
If misconduct is established beyond reasonable doubt, this may result in one or more of the following outcomes, among others:
- If a submitted manuscript is still under consideration, it may be rejected and returned to the author.
- If a paper has already been published online, depending on the nature and severity of the infraction, either a correction notice will be published and linked to the paper, or retraction of the paper will occur, following the COPE Retraction Guidelines.
- The relevant party’s institution(s) and/or other journals may be informed.
Ethical research
We take research integrity seriously, and all research published in the Journal must have been conducted in a fair and ethical manner following the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines on ethical oversight. Moreover, the Journal requires that all research be done according to any applicable international and local guidelines.
Animal subjects
Studies involving organisms legally defined as animals require approval from the relevant institutional ethics committee or institutional animal use and care committee, and the research must be conducted in accordance with applicable national and international guidelines. All such manuscripts must include a statement in the Methods section providing details of the name of the committee(s) that approved the study, as well as the permit or animal license numbers where available. Where a study has been granted an exemption, this must be stated in the Methods section along with the name of the authorising body. Please be prepared to provide further information to the editorial office upon request.
Laboratory animals
Manuscripts describing research involving laboratory-based animals must include details on housing, husbandry, and steps taken to reduce suffering. Details on the planned behavioral observations or physiological measurements used to determine the humane endpoint must be described. You are advised to consult the NC3Rs guide on Humane Endpoints and the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Guidelines for the Humane Slaughter of Animals.
ARRIVE guidelines
You are encouraged to consult the ARRIVE guidelines recommended by the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3R).
Euthanasia or anesthesia methods
Where applicable, any euthanasia or anesthesia methods must be carried out in accordance with applicable veterinary guidelines. These methods must be described in detail in the manuscript.
Human subjects
When reporting on human subjects, you should indicate whether the procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Helsinki Declaration, which were developed by the World Medical Association. For non-interventional studies, where ethical approval is not required or where a study has been granted an exemption by an ethics committee, this should be stated within the manuscript with a full explanation. Otherwise, manuscripts must include a statement in the Methods section that the research was performed after approval by a local ethics committee, institutional review board and/or local licensing committee, or that such approval was not required. The name of the authorizing body and any reference/permit numbers (where available) should also be stated there. Please be prepared to provide further information to the editorial office upon request.
Human subjects must give written informed consent, or if they are minors or incapacitated, such consent must be obtained from their parents or guardians. Consent forms should cover not only study participation but also the publication of the data collected. Also, any patient or provider information should be anonymized to the extent possible; names and ID numbers should not be used in the text and must be removed from any images (X-rays, photographs, etc.). Please note blanking out an individual’s eyes in a photograph is not an effective way to conceal their identity. In studies where verbal, rather than written, informed consent was obtained, this must be explained and stated within the manuscript. If informed consent is not required or where a study has been granted an exemption, this must be included in the Methods section along with the name of the authorizing body. Please be prepared to provide written consent forms signed by the participants or other appropriate documentation to the editorial office upon request.
Inclusive language
We encourage you to consider using inclusive language and images when preparing your manuscript. As defined by the Linguistic Society of America, “Inclusive language acknowledges diversity, conveys respect to all people, is sensitive to differences, and promotes equal opportunities”. For guidelines, please see the C4DISC Guidelines on inclusive language and images.
Accessibility
Written, visual, and audio content in your submission should be accessible to all. Please see the C4DISC guidelines for making text, images, charts, tables, and audio and video accessible.
Data availability
Data archiving
JEB requires that all raw data supporting the results are archived in an appropriate public repository such as GenBank, Dryad, Zenodo, etc. At the point of manuscript revisions, authors are required to provide a “Data Availability Statement” including a link to the repository they have used. The Data Availability Statement will appear in the final accepted article. Wherever possible, the scripts and other artefacts used to generate the analyses presented in the paper should also be publicly archived. Please see our guide to reproducible archiving of data and code on the JEB blog. If your paper is accepted for publication, our Data Editor will review your data archives for accessibility and reusability purposes prior to your paper proceeding to production.
You can visit OUP’s Research data page for information on general repositories for all data types, and resources for selecting repositories by subject area. Note that the costs of archiving on Dryad is borne by ESEB and data deposition is thus free for authors of accepted manuscripts in JEB.
Temporary embargoes or exceptions to depositing data may be granted at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief. Similarly, authors may request an exemption from the data archiving policy due to legal, privacy, ethical, or other limitations or restrictions. Exceptions of either type will be made only under exceptional circumstances and at the discretion of the Journal. Please notify the editorial office when submitting your manuscript if you wish to request an exception. If an exception is granted, a data availability statement must still be included in your paper specifying what cannot be shared, for how long, and why.
Data availability statement
The inclusion of a data availability statement is a requirement for papers published in the Journal. Data availability statements provide a standardised format for readers to understand the availability of original and third-party data underlying the research results described in the paper. The statement should describe and provide means of access by linking to the data or providing the required unique identifier.
More information and example data availability statements.
Digital preservation
Content published in the Journal will automatically be deposited into digital preservation services, including CLOCKSS, the Global LOCKSS Network, and Portico. This ensures the long-term preservation of your work. Through LOCKSS, participating institutions can sustain access to content if the Journal were to otherwise be unavailable, even for a short period of time. Should the Journal ever cease to publish, or content would otherwise become permanently unavailable, long-term access to the archives of CLOCKSS and Portico would be triggered. Until such a trigger event were to occur, this content is not available to the public through CLOCKSS and Portico.
Self-archiving policy
Self-archiving refers to posting a copy of your work on a publicly accessible website or repository. Under certain circumstances, you may self-archive versions of your work on your own webpages, on institutional webpages, and in other repositories. For information about the Journal's policy, and to learn which version(s) of your paper are acceptable for self-archiving, please see our Author self-archiving policy.
Publishing Agreements and Charges
Authors, please read each section on the licenses and charges carefully.
Publishing agreements
After your manuscript is accepted, you will be asked to sign a license to publish through the Journals Licensing and Online Payments portal. The Journal offers the option of publishing under either a non-open access (standard) license or an open access (Creative Commons) license. There is a charge to publish under an open access license, which allows your paper to be freely accessible to all readers immediately upon online publication. Editorial decisions occur prior to this step and are not influenced by payment or ability to pay. The standard license makes your paper available only to Journal subscribers and there is no license charge. This license grants OUP an exclusive license to publish and distribute the content. There is no transfer of ownership of the copyright. You, the author, retain copyright for the content.
Please note that some funders require open access publication as a condition of funding. If you are unsure whether you are required to publish open access, please check with your funder or institution before selecting your license.
Papers can be published under the following types of licenses:
- Standard license to publish (Oxford University Press (OUP) Journals, Standard Publication Model)
- Creative Commons Attribution license (CC BY)
- Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial license (CC BY-NC)
- Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives license (CC BY-NC-ND)
- United States Government License
- Crown Copyright License
Please see the OUP guidance on Licenses, copyright, and re-use rights for more information regarding these publishing agreement options.
Complying with funder mandates
Please note that some funders require open access publication as a condition of funding. If you are unsure whether you are required to publish open access, please do clarify any such requirements with your funder or institution before selecting your license. Further information on funder mandates and direct links to a range of funder policies.
Charges
Open access charges
Please see the details of open access licenses and charges. If you select an open access license, you must pay the open access charge or request to use an institutional agreement to pay the open access charge through the Journals Licensing and Online Payments portal
OUP has a growing number of open access agreements with institutions and consortia, which provide funding for open access publishing (also known as Read and Publish agreements). This means corresponding authors from participating institutions can publish open access, and the institution may pay the charge. Find out if your institution has an open access agreement.
To be eligible for one of OUP’s Read and Publish agreements, the corresponding author must provide their qualifying institution as their primary affiliation when they submit their manuscript. After submission, changing the corresponding author in order to access Read and Publish funding is not permissible.
Colour charges
The Journal does not charge for colour.
Page charges
The Journal does not have page charges.
Member discounts
Corresponding authors who are members of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology are eligible for discounts on Open Access publication charges (see the open access charge list). Please provide your member identifier when prompted as you submit your manuscript.
After Publication
Changes to published papers
The Journal will only make changes to published papers if the publication record is seriously affected by the academic accuracy of the published information. Changes to a published paper will be accompanied by a formal correction notice linking to and from the original paper. As needed, we follow the COPE guidelines on retractions.
For more information and details of how to request changes, including for authors who wish to update their name and/or pronouns, please see OUP’s policy on changes to published papers.
Promoting your work
As the author, you are the best advocate for your work, and we encourage you to be involved in promoting your publication. Sharing your ideas and news about your publication with your colleagues and friends could take as little as 15 minutes and will make a real difference in raising the profile of your research.
You can promote your work by:
- Sharing your paper with colleagues and friends. If your paper is published open access, it will always be freely available to all readers, and you can share it without any limitations. Otherwise, use the toll-free link that is emailed to you after publication. It provides permanent, free access to your paper, even if your paper is updated.
- Signing up for an ORCID iD author identifier to distinguish yourself from any other researchers with the same name, create an online profile showcasing all your publications, and increase the visibility of your work.
- Using social media to promote your work. To learn more about self-promotion on social media, see our social media guide for authors.
- During submission you will be asked to provide a social media abstract (280 characters or less). Please do include this with any relevant handles/tags. The Journal will use this to announce your accepted paper from its own social media profiles.
Find out how Oxford University Press promotes your content.
Contact Us
For questions regarding submission and review, including appeals, you can reach the editorial office by email at [email protected].
After your paper has been sent to production, you can contact [email protected] for questions regarding the production process or publication. Please see the Changes to Published Papers section if you need to request a substantive correction to your published paper.
