Submissions

Author Guidelines

INSTRUCTIONS FOR AUTHORS

All manuscripts, regardless the type, must be presented in A4 single-column format, entirely double spaced. The number of pages should be indicated in the lower right corner of the page. Please number lines continuously. The text must be written in 12-point Times New Roman script. Scientific names of genera and species should be written in italics.

Structure of the manuscript

Organize your manuscript according to the following structure: Title, Authors’ names and addresses, Abstract, Keywords, Resumen, Palabras Clave, Main Text, Acknowledgements, References, Tables, Table and Figure captions, and Figures.

Title: Title must be short, concise and informative (avoiding abbreviations, if possible). The title should be in BOLD CAPITALS, and centred. Spanish translation of the title must be included.

Authors’ names: First and last names are given in full, plus middle initials (centred). Present authors’ addresses below the names and centred, with indication of the corresponding affiliation addresses in a lower-case superscript number (1, 2, etc.). Full postal address for each author is required, including e-mail. Corresponding author must be indicated by an asterisk (*).

Abstract: A concise abstract in the language of the manuscript is required, without a heading, not exceeding 250 words, and in one paragraph. The Abstract must include the aim of the research, new findings, main results and major conclusions. It should be informative enough to stand alone. References may not be included, and abbreviations should be avoided. New taxa or taxonomical emendations must be indicated.

Keywords: A maximum of five keywords should follow the abstract. Avoid general terms as well as those included in the title.

Resumen: A translation of the Abstract into Spanish must be included.

Palabras clave: Spanish translation of the Keywords must be included.

Main text: The main text must be organized to include: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Systematic Palaeontology, Results, Discussion, and Conclusions.

Three orders of headings can be used to subdivide the main text, all flush with the left-hand margin: 1. FIRST ORDER IN BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS; 1.1. Second order in lower case bold, with only the first letter in upper case, unless it includes other words that by convention begin with a capital letter; 1.1.1. Third order in lower case and italics, with only the first letter in upper case, unless it includes other words that by convention begin with a capital letter.

The first paragraph after any heading will be separated by a white line and be flush with the left-hand margin. Subsequently, the first lines of the rest of the paragraphs will be indented.

Introduction: The Introduction must include an informative background and the objectives of the work, emphasizing the significance of the research.

Materials and Methods: This section is to indicate the studied material and the conducted methodology, giving precise information about the specific techniques and analytical instrumentation used. References to previous applications, if relevant, will be included. A precise localization of the studied samples using modern positioning systems is recommended. Repository of the studied samples must be indicated.

Systematic Palaeontology. SPANISH JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY welcomes taxonomic manuscripts from all palaeontological groups, and includes a systematic informative section. Taxonomical nomenclature rules can be found in recent issues of the Journal. Please follow the example in volume 25 (2):

Phylum BRYOZOA Ehrenberg, 1983

Class STENOLAEMATA Borg, 1926

Order FENESTRATA Elias & Condra, 1957

Family Semicosciniidae Morozova, 1987

Genus Bigeyina gen. nov.

Bigeyina winteri (Bornemann, 1884)

Headings and heading order for the different sections must be as follow:

a) for a new genus: Genus name, Figure(s), Synonymy, Type species, Derivatio nominis, Diagnosis, Description, Remarks, Geographic and stratigraphical distribution, Species composition.

b) for a new species: Species name, Figure(s), Synonymy, Derivatio nominis, Holotype, Paratype, etc., Material, Diagnosis, Description, Remarks, Geographic and stratigraphical distribution.

Authorship of species should be indicated the first time that a specific species name is cited in the text.

Nomenclature. When defining a new taxon, the current editions of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN) and International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) must be followed for rules of nomenclatures. The list of taxa defined in the Systematic Palaeontology section, should be arranged alphabetically.

Synonymies. Symbols listed in Matthews (1973) must be used to annotate synonymies. Authors are encouraged to include in the synonymy the most significant citations, but not a complete list of combinations. The list of synonymy should be as in the following example:

1884 Cyclopelta winteri; Bornemann, p. 864-865, Pl. 31.

1953 Cyclopelta winteri; Kräusel, p. 45-62, Pls. 1-3, Text-figs. 1-7.

When defining a new taxon, all the types and the illustrated specimens must be housed in an accessible repository with unique catalogue numbers indicated in the text.

Results. A concise section presenting the key results in a clear mode must be included. Any repetition of data presented in figures and tables should be avoided.

Discussion. This section includes the discussion and interpretation of the previous results and their relevance with respect to published work. Please avoid any repetition of the previously presented results or the addition of new ones.

Conclusions. Conclusions must be clear and concise. This is not a summary section, but it may include the most significant implications of the main findings. If the author prefers, this section may be presented within the Discussion. At the end of the conclusions, open questions, prospective approaches or new hypotheses based on the conducted research can be added.

Acknowledgements. This section includes relevant information regarding people, organizations, etc., that provided help for the conducted research, manuscript review and/or financial support.

References:

References in the text. Cites references in the text by author surname and year in parentheses. Separate authors and year by a comma. In the case of two authors, use an ampersand (&) between the names, and first author followed by et al. for three or more authors. In a list of several references within parentheses, use a semicolon to separate. Examples: Crusafont (1952), Rodríguez & Ramírez (1987), Braga et al. (2006, 2010), (Röhl et al., 2000, 2007a, 2007b; Martínez-Chacón & Rivas, 2009).

References in the reference list. All, and only, printed publications cited in the text, figures and tables should appear in the Reference list, including those pertaining to the authorship of all taxa.

IMPORTANT: All references in the reference list must include the corresponding Digital Object Identifier (DOI).

References must be arranged in alphabetic order by the author's or editor's surname and then chronologically. Suffixes (a, b, etc.) must be included to distinguish two or more papers by the same author(s) in the same year. Examples as follow:

Kidwell, S.M. 1991.

Kidwell, S.M. & Bosence, D.W.J. 1991.

Kidwell, S.M. & Holland, S.M. 1991.

Kidwell, S.M., Fürsich, F.T. & Aigner, T. 1986.

Seilacher, A. 1991a.

Seilacher, A. 1991b.

Seilacher, A. 2007.

Seilacher, A. & Aigner, T. 1991.

Journals

Matthews, S.C. 1973. Notes on open nomenclature and on synonymy lists. Palaeontology, 16, 713-719.

Articles by DOI

Röhl, U., Westerhold, Th., Bralower, T.J. & Zachos, J.C. 2007. On the duration of the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM). Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 8, Q12002, doi: 10.1029/2007GC001784

Books

Martínez-Chacón, M.L. & Rivas, P. (eds.) 2009. Paleontología de Invertebrados. Sociedad Española de Paleontología, Universidad de Oviedo, Universidad de Granada, Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, Oviedo.

Seilacher, A. 2007. Trace Fossil Analysis. Springer, Berlin.

Chapter or paper in a book

Braga, J.C., Martín, J.C., Betzler, C. & Aguirre, J. 2006. Models of temperate carbonate deposition in Neogene basins in SE Spain: a synthesis. In: Cool-Water Carbonates: Depositional Systems and Palaeoenvironmental Controls (eds. Pedley, H.M. & Carannante, G.). Geological Society of London, Special Publication, 225, 121-135.

Truyols Santonja, J. & Sánchez de Posada, L. 1983. El Carbonífero inferior y medio de la Región de Pliegues y Mantos. In: Carbonífero y Pérmico de España (coord. Martínez Díaz, C.). Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, Madrid, 39-59.

Reports, proceedings of meetings and symposia

Rodríguez-Tovar, F.J., Löwemark, L. & Pardo-Igúzquiza, E. 2008. Zoophycos distribution as a potential proxy to approach different scale palaeoceanographic cyclical oscillations. The Second International Congress on Ichnology, Abstract Book, p. 111.

Online document

Nicolo, M.J. 2008. Multiple early Eocene hyperthermal events: Their lithologic expressions and environmental consequences. PhD Thesis, Rice University (unpublished). http://scholarship.rice.edu/handle/1911/26797.

Unpublished thesis

Nouri, J. 2007. La paléoichnologie des empreintes de pas des dinosauriens imprimées dans les couches du Jurassique du Haut-Atlas Central. PhD Thesis, University Mohamed V (unpublished).

LANGUAGE

SPANISH JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY accepts manuscripts in Spanish and, preferentially, British spelling English. It is strongly recommended that your manuscript be corrected by a native person if the manuscript is not written in your original mother tongue. Manuscripts that are difficult to understand for readers in general will be returned to the author unrefereed.

TABLES

Tables can be submitted at the end of the manuscript, after the references (each table must start on a separate sheet). Tables should be numbered in Arabic numerals consecutively, according to their appearance in the text. Examples: in Table 1, (Table 1), (Tables 1-2), (Tables 1, 3). For each table an explanatory table caption must be supplied separately, under Table captions, not together with the table body.

FIGURES

SPANISH JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY publishes all colour figures free of charge for printed and online versions.

All illustrations (i.e., diagrams, drawings, figures, plates, etc.) are called Figures. Figures can be submitted at the end of the manuscript, after the Figure captions.

Linear measurement scales must be included, especially for fossil specimens. Please, try to avoid magnifications (for instance, x1.8). For maps, a scale and either a north arrow and/or an indication of degrees of latitude and longitude should be included.

For photographic illustrations, please ensure high final quality: photographs should be sharply focused and of medium contrast, avoiding extremes of black and white and poorly contrasted tones.

If figures have been previously published elsewhere, you must obtain permission for reproduction.

Figure Lettering. In the case of text within an illustration, use Helvetica or Arial. Make sure to use uniform lettering and sizing of the original artwork. The minimum final size of the lettering within should be 2-3 mm; no letters smaller than 2 mm, please.

Figure Numbering. Number the figures consecutively using Arabic numerals according to their appearance in the text. Examples: in Figure 1, (Fig. 1), (Figs 1a-1b, 1d). Individual parts of the same figure should be denoted by lower case letters (a, b, etc.), using uniform lettering (Helvetica or Arial bold) and sizing of your original artwork. The lower case letters indicating the individual parts of single figures should run consecutively from left to right and from top to bottom.

Figure Size. Figures should occupy the full width of the page (18.3 cm), or a column of text (8.8 cm), with a maximal size of printed figures of 18.3 cm x 24.2 cm. Make sure that in the final version all lines are at least 1 mm wide. If possible, provide the figures near the desired size of the printed version.

Electronic Figure Submission. When submitting the PDF file, electronic figures should be supplied with high-resolution (300 DPI). Ensure high quality of the final product. Each figure must be indicated by the first author and the corresponding number.

Figure Captions. Each figure should have a precise caption, providing a complete and informative description of the illustration, and the explanation of all symbols and abbreviations used. Figure captions are to be included in the text of the manuscript, on a separate sheet after the table captions. Figure captions must be indicated as Figure 1., Figure 2., etc.

NOMENCLATURE AND UNITS

SPANISH JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY uses the International System of Units (IS) for measurements, the International Stratigraphic Guide for biostratigraphic and lithostratigraphic units, and the IUGS standard geological time scale and rock names.

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES

Abbreviations. They should be written with no stops between letters and explained at the first mention (OAE, not O.A.E.). Sentences should not start with abbreviations (Oceanic Anoxic Event… rather than OAE…).

Spelling. Use British spelling, not American.

Nouns and stratigraphic units. Do not abbreviate (Jurassic, not Jur.)

Stratigraphic boundaries. Use of a forward slash rather than a hyphen is preferred (Palaeocene/Eocene rather than Palaeocene-Eocene).

Consecutive numbers and letters: Included as 1-2 or a-b, neither 1, 2 nor a, b.

Latin words and abbreviations: Some Latin words, phrases and abbreviations should be italicized, including in situ, incertae sedis, s.s., but not others as e.g., i.e., cf., aff., etc.

Numerals and metric units. Use a decimal point (0.5), and comma for thousands (5,000). Metric units should always be abbreviated as mm, cm, m, km, etc.

Blank. Use a single blank between numerals and units or percentages (5 mm, not 5mm; 25 %, not 25%).

Time abbreviations. Use “yr” for less than a thousand years ago, “ka” for thousands of years ago, “Ma” for millions of years ago, and “Ga” for thousands of millions of years ago.

Personal communications. To be used very sparingly and never as a conclusion. When necessary, always abbreviated to “pers. comm.” followed by the date (Buatois, pers. comm. 2011).