Category: Guidelines for Contributors

Devon Birds aims to publish material on all aspects of ornithology and birdwatching in Devon, and especially encourages contributions that include an element of research or original observation. Short notes, reports of field meetings or notable birdwatching experiences are welcome, as well as longer research papers. The Editor(s) will try to help with, and advise on, potential contributions. Authors of longer articles are strongly encouraged to provide a brief synopsis and some sample text before submitting complete texts. The following notes offer guidance on the main points to consider.

Electronic texts

This is the preferred means of preparing and submitting texts. Contributions should be sent by email as an attached Word file (.doc or .docx). Please do not format your text as it is much easier for the Editor(s) to deal with unformatted text.

Typed or hand-written manuscripts

These are very time-consuming for the Editor(s) to work with and are only acceptable as a last resort. They must be typed or neatly handwritten. Pages should be numbered and typed/written on one side only, double spaced and with wide margins (at least 25 mm) all round.

Species names

Species names should be capitalised: e.g. Reed Bunting, but with generic names in lower case, e.g. buntings. Latin names of birds, other animals and plants should be given, in italics, the first time the species is mentioned.

References

If your contribution includes any references, please provide these in accordance with the following examples:

Sitters, H.P. 1988. Tetrad Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Devon. DBWPS, Yelverton.

Waldon, J. 2006. How will climate change impact on the birds of Devon? Devon Birds 59(2): 7–12.

Supporting material

Supporting tables, graphs, diagrams, maps and other artwork should be sent as separate files or on separate pages and clearly numbered. The printed area of Devon Birds is 215 x 144 mm (8 1/2 × 5 5/8 inches). Please bear this in mind when preparing tables, diagrams, drawings, and photographs; a graphic which contains a lot of detail may appear cluttered or be impossible to read when reduced to fit the page (over two columns) or a single column. Photographs should ideally be submitted as high-resolution JPG, TIF or, preferably, RAW files. Colour photographs or 35mm transparencies may be submitted for scanning and will be returned. Captions should include species, age and sex (if applicable), date and place. Digital images over 5MB should be submitted on CD or DVD, with captions. Otherwise, please suggest any photos that you would like to accompany your article and we will do our best to find something from the archive.

Author’s details

Please include your name as you would like it to appear in Devon Birds, and postal and/or email addresses that you are willing to have published at the end of your article (to assist any readers who may like to contact you). A phone number will be of great help to the Editor(s), especially if you are not on email, but this will not be published. We now like to include a short biography of each author (see examples in recent issues), so please also add some relevant details of your involvement with the subject of your article, membership of Devon Birds, etc.

Submission and acceptance

Submit one copy of your paper to the Editor(s) and retain a copy for yourself. Receipt of your paper will be acknowledged as soon as possible. Your paper will be read by the Editor(s) and also sometimes by an independent referee. The Editor’s decision on accepting papers for publication is final, but recommendations will always be made in the case of any item considered unsuitable. If a paper needs revision, a marked-up copy will be returned to you for the necessary changes. Electronic submissions will be returned by email, with comments using the ‘Track Changes’ function of Microsoft Word.

Once an article has been accepted for publication, the Editor(s) will schedule it for inclusion in a future issue, which may not necessarily be the next one to appear. A PDF proof of the article in its final edited form will be emailed to you for approval. This should be checked and any corrections notified to the Editor(s) as soon as possible within the stated deadline. Please do NOT take this opportunity to rewrite your paper!

Current submission addresses

Articles and supporting imagery should be sent to:

Mike Lock, Editor, Devon Birds, Glen Fern, Whitford Road, Musbury, Axminster EX13 7AP

Email: mike.lock@devonbirds.org

Good-quality digital photographs of birds in Devon (up to 5MB) for use in Devon Birds can be sent to Mike Langman, Art Editor, at mike.langman@devonbirds.org. Follow the guidelines above, although single pictures up to 5MB in size can be emailed. Please ensure every photo submitted is file-named to identify species, age (if applicable), location, date and photographers initials. File names can be abbreviated as per the following example: a Mediterranean Gull 2^nd summer photo taken at Instow on 20 July 2012 by Joe Bloggs could be: MedGull2sInstw200712JBs. Images in excess of 5MB should be sent on a CD or DVD to Mike at 38 Brantwood Drive, Paignton TQ4 5HZ.

Submission of any photo assumes that Devon Birds may use the image free of charge in any of its own publications or for Devon Birds publicity purposes. Copyright remains with the photographer.