Journal of Systematic Palaeontology

Instructions for authors

Scope of the journal
The Journal of Systematic Palaeontology publishes papers which use systematics in ways that significantly advance our understanding of palaeogeography, palaeobiology, functional morphology, palaeoecology, biostratigraphy or phylogenetic relationships, as well as papers describing new or poorly understood fossil faunas and floras. Shorter contributions on technical or conceptual issues relating to systematic methodology and conservation issues are also welcome. However, papers that simply present systematic descriptions without attempting to explain their broader significance will not be published. Collections of thematic papers, such as those arising from symposia, are occasionally published, and these may have a more liberal remit.

Submission
As from 1/09/09, all manuscripts and revisions must be submitted using Manuscript Central. Please upload your manuscript following instructions given on the website:
http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/tjsp
Please follow the style guide given below when preparing your text, figures and any supplementary material for submission.

Your paper will be sent out for review by at least two specialists and, based on their reports and the assessment of the Handling Editor and Editor-in-Chief, a decision on the suitability of the paper for publication will be made. 

Copyright
Each author will be asked to sign a statement transferring full and exclusive rights to their article to the publisher Taylor & Francis, who will retain copyright.

Style Guide

General instructions
• Use a standard typeface, such as Times, Geneva or Helvetica, 12 pt typeface, 1.5 line-spacing with left justification for the text.
• Number all pages consecutively including the title page and references.
• Please do not include a contents page.

•Use British spelling throughout, but –ize and analyse.  I. If in doubt follow the spelling in Chambers Dictionary
• Material being described must be registered as part of a formal collection housed in a recognised institution so that it is accessible and available for study by subsequent researchers.

1. Title
The title should be short and informative. It should include reference to the taxonomic group being covered and the stratigraphical and/or geographical context of the paper.  Left align the title in bold and type in lower case after the initial letter.

Each author should be listed on a separate line, followed by postal and email addresses.

2. Abstract
The Abstract is an extremely important part of the paper and care should be taken to make this concise and informative. This will be made available over the Internet as well as in the printed copy. Abstracts should be no longer than 300 words and should summarize the main results and conclusions of the paper. All nNew taxonomic names should be listed.

Provide four to six key words following the abstract.

3. Text
The text should be written in as clear and understandable a way as possible. Within the body of the text, paragraphs should follow on without a line-space, and with the first word indented. Use up to three levels of headings.
Please use single quotation marks throughout (any usage), or double if a quotation within a quotation.
Ensure any abbreviations used are explained on first usage.

(i) Headings
First order headings

Bold, 14 pt, left justified, initial capital then lower case and followed by a space of one line.

Second order headings
Bold, 12 pt, left justified, initial capital then lower case and with the text commencing on the following line.

Third order headings. Bold, 12 pt, left justified, initial capital then lower case followed by a full point and with the text commencing on the same line.

(ii) Citing references. References should be cited in the text as follows:
Gauthier (1902) or (Gauthier 1902) for single authors.
Cotteau & Triger (1855) or (Cotteau & Triger 1855) for two authors.
Skelton et al. (1990) or (Skelton et al. 1990) for multiple authors.
Lambert in Lambert & Thiery (1925) or (Lambert in Lambert & Thiery 1925) for subdivided publications.
Ali (1989, 1992a, b) or (Ali 1989, 1992a, b) for citing two or more publications.
(Ward & Cooper 1999; Keith 2001) for multiple references.
Note that when citing authors of taxonomic names, a comma should be placed between the author's name and the date of publication, e.g. Terebellaria ramosissima Lamouroux, 1821 or Schizonema subplicatum (Reed, 1917).

Page and figure numbers in other texts should be cited as follows:
Keith 2001, p. 27
Keith 2002, fig. 3

References for all taxonomic names should appear in the Reference section.

(iii) Citing illustrations. All figures must be referred to in the text, and should normally be numbered in the sequence in which they are cited. Use Fig. when referring to a single illustration or part of an illustration and Figs when referring to two or more separate illustrations.

(iv) Abbreviating taxonomic names.  The first citation of taxonomic names in each paragraph should be in full, but can be abbreviated thereafter within the paragraph.

4. Taxonomic layout
In papers that include systematic descriptions, please use the following style guide.
The taxonomic section should always start with a first order heading.

Supraspecific taxa. Centred and with taxonomic name in bold but author/s and date of publication not in bold. Ensure that authors of higher taxa are included in the bibliography.

Successive paragraphs can then follow as necessary, with Type species, Diagnosis, Occurrence, Description, and Remarks as third order headings.

Species-level taxonomy.  Species names should always be preceded by text indicating the supraspecific placement at generic level. Higher categories are optional, and the use of plesions and annotated hierarchical systems such as that of E.O. Wiley (1979. Systematic Zoology 28, 308-337) is encouraged if appropriate.

• Species names should be in bold and italics and centred.
• References to figures should follow on the next line, also centred and in brackets.
• The synonymy list should list previous names as they were published, and in order of date of publication. The author of synonyms should be separated from the published name by a semicolon. Examples of synonymy entries are as follows:

1839 Orthis semicircularis Sowerby in Murchison: 639, pl. 21, fig. 7.
1987 Dolerorthis sowerbyiana (Davidson); Temple: 30, pl. 1, figs 11-18.
2008 Triplesia girvanensis Cocks: 81, pl. 6, figs 8-12.

• The annotation system recommended by S.C. Mathews (1973, Palaeontology 16, 713-719) may be applied.
• Type and other material should be listed (ensure that abbreviations of collection  repositories are explained somewhere in the text, e.g. in a Material and Methods section, or at the end of the Introduction).
• The following order should be used for species systematics after the synonymy list: Diagnosis, Derivation of name [for new species only], Material, Occurrence [stratigraphical and geographical], Description and Remarks.

5. References

• Authors' names should be given in full each time, in sentence case and bold.
• List authors alphabetically.
• Multiple publications by the same author should be listed chronologically.
• Use an ampersand (& to link two or more authors of co-authored papers.
• Indent succeeding lines in each citation.

 (i) Journals
• Journal titles should be given in full and italicised.
• The volume number should be in bold.
• Pagination should be given in full and separated from the volume number by a comma.
• Plates should only be listed if they are not included within the pagination of the paper.
• Only give part numbers of volumes when this is required to specify the paper, i.e. if each part in the volume is paginated from zero.

Bittner, A. 1892. Ueber Echiniden des Tertiars von Australien. Sitzungsberichte der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Classe, 101(3), 331-371, pls 1-4.
Checcia-Rispoli, G.  1917. “Zuffardia,” nuovo genere di Echinidi del Cretaceo superiore della Tripolitania raccolti dal cav. Ignazio Sanfilippo. Giornale di Scienze Naturali ed Economiche di Palermo, 30, 14 pp., 1 pl.
Clark, H. L. 1923. Two new genera of sea-urchins. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard, 65, 341-348.
Gallemí, J. 1977. Los yacimientos con equínidos del nivel “Homes Morts” entre los ríos N. Pallaresa y N. Ribagorzana (Cret. Sup. del Prepirineo de Lérida). Publicaciones de Geología Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, 6, 1-92, pls 1-12.
Gallemí, J., López, G., Martínez, R., Muñoz, J. & Pons, J.M. 1995. Distribution of some Campanian and Maastrichtian macrofaunas in southeast Spain. Cretaceous Research, 16, 257-271.
Lambert, J. 1905. In Doncieux, A, Fossiles nummulitiques de l'Aube et de l'Herault.  Annales de la Université de Lyon, 17, 129-164, pl. 5.

(ii) Books
• Italicise the title of the book.
• Give publisher and city of publication followed by number of pages.
• For chapters within books follow the style guide below. Use (ed.) and (eds) to indicate editorship.

Bardack, D. 1997. Wormlike animals: Enteropneusta (acorn worms). Pp. 89–92 in D.W. Shabica, and A.A. Hay (eds) Richardson's Guide to the Fossil Fauna of Mazon Creek. Northeastern Illinois University, Chicago.
Benito, J. & Pardos, F. 1997. Hemichordata. Pp. 15-102 in F.W. Harrison & E.E. Ruppert (eds) Microscopic anatomy of invertebrates. Volume 15, Hemichordata, Chaetognatha, and the invertebrate chordates. Wiley-Liss, New York.
Carroll, S. B., Grenier, J. K. & Weatherbee, S. D. 2001. From DNA to diversity: molecular genetics and the evolution of animal design. Blackwell Science, Oxford, 214 pp.
Young, G. & Bird, J. 1828. A geological survey of the Yorkshire Coast: describing the strata and fossils occurring between the Humber and the Tees, from the German Ocean to the Plain of York. 2nd edition. Kirby, Whitby, iv + 367 pp., 19 pls.

6. Figures
All illustrations, whether line drawings or photographs, are specified as Figures. These may include composite illustrations in which the component parts are labelled using letter suffixes, e.g. A, B, C. This lettering and any other labelling should be at least 2 mm tall, and preferably in a standard sans serif font such as Helvetica. The maximum size for full-page illustrations is 175 mm x 235 mm, or 84 mm wide to fit a single column, and figures should be designed to make good use of the space, ensuring that background space between component parts of a figure is minimized.

Figures can be prepared with either a white or black background, though the former is preferable.

Illustrations should be saved as Jpegs, TIFF or PICT files. Line drawings should be submitted at 600 dpi, digital images of halftones (photographs) at 300 dpi.

7. Appendices and Supplementary Material
Authors are encouraged to place data such as character lists into appendices, which will be printed after the References, or Supplementary Material available online. The editors may recommend moving secondary data into one of these two categories.

8. Pdfs
Authors will receive a free pdf for personal use.