Aquatic Mammals Journal  is pleased to announce the following exciting new updates as we continue to develop the journal and expand our services to the scientific community:

· Now offering free PDFs of all articles appearing from Volume 1 (1972)  through Volume 28 (2002)

· Real time publishing: articles are citable (with DOI and page number) as soon as galley proofs are approved and finalized

· Now accepting new contribution types: Short Notes and Reports

· Updated and modernized website

· Going Green – the journal gets a bit greener

More info on these developments is provided below:

Free PDFs of all articles from 1972 to 2002

Visitors to the Aquatic Mammals’ Web site are now able to download (free of charge) all articles appearing in the journal starting with Volume 1 (1972) through Volume 28 (2002). Articles are available as PDFs. Articles appearing in Volume 29 (2003) to the present are available to our subscribers on Ingenta Connect. Non-subscribers may also purchase single articles from Volume 29 onwards on Ingenta Connect, or whole volumes and issues via the Aquatic Mammals Web site. Visit http://www.aquaticmammalsjournal.org for more info.

Real time publishing

Once an article has been peer-reviewed and accepted for publication, and the author-revised manuscript is returned to the journal, it will be immediately formatted by our publisher; Document and Publication Services (DPS). After review of the galley proofs by the editors and authors, a final PDF of the article will be made available to the authors for distribution. No more waiting for months for an accepted article to be published! Articles will have a volume number, an issue number, a DOI number, and page numbers, so they will be immediately citable. As soon as an entire issue is available, all articles will be placed online through Ingenta and ProQuest. Submit a manuscript at this link: http://am.expressacademic.org/actions/author.php

New contribution types now accepted

Aquatic Mammals accepts contributions formatted as full Articles, Short Notes, Reports, and Letters to the Editor. Full articles must conform to the journal's formatting guidelines. Short Notes also adhere to general author guidelines and may include experimental results or observations involving scientifically valid methods, but where small sample sizes, or limited results do not allow for sufficient elaboration to constitute a full article. Reports include results compiled from conference or other workshops, meetings, etc. Letters to the Editor may include important announcements or comments on topics relevant to the scientific study of aquatic mammals or constructive comments related to previous contributions to Aquatic Mammals. Submit a manuscript at this link: http://am.expressacademic.org/actions/author.php

Re-designed website

The Aquatic Mammals’ Web site (http://www.aquaticmammalsjournal.org) has been recently re-designed to allow for easy access to archive/back issues, subscription information, author/submission information, videos and media accompanying published articles, Historical Perspective DVD sales, etc. All submissions to the journal are now handled through Manuscript Fast Track, an online manuscript processing service which has streamlined the review and publication process.

Going Green Policy

Aquatic Mammals is sincerely concerned about the use of consumables such as paper, ink, and mailing envelopes. The journal’s editors, Editorial Board, and sponsors—the European Association of Aquatic Mammals, the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums, and the International Marine Animal Trainers Association—want to minimize the impact of journal publications on the environment. As a result, we have made several changes over the last five years. In 2004, Aquatic Mammals committed to printing the journal on paper made with 30% post-consumer recycled content while retaining a high standard for print quality. In 2005, the journal made manuscripts available as PDF online format through Ingenta and ProQuest. In 2009, the journal made progress toward this goal by adopting an electronic manuscript management system, Manuscript Fast Track, which allows authors, reviewers, and editors to exchange articles via a paperless, online method.

Please do not hesitate to contact the editors if you have any questions, or require more information.

Kind regards,

Aquatic Mammals Journal

Managing Editor

Kathleen M. Dudzinski, Ph.D.

Phone: +1 860 514 4704

Fax: +1 860 536 1740

E-mail: kathleen@dpcmail.org or aquaticmammals@gmail.org

Co-Editor

Justin D. Gregg, Ph.D.

Phone: +1 802 392 4208            

Fax: +1 860 536 1740

E-mail: justin@dcpmail.org

P.O. Box 711

Old Mystic, CT 06372-0711

USA

Aquatic Mammals is a peer-reviewed journal sponsored by the European Association for Aquatic Mammals (EAAM), The Alliance of Marine mammal Parks and Aquariums (AMMPA), and the International Marine Mammal Trainers’ Association (IMATA). Aquatic Mammals publishes articles related to marine mammals (whales, dolphins, seals, fur seals, sea lions, walrus, dugongs, manatees, sea otters, and polar bears). Topics of publication on both captive animals and wild marine mammals include aspects of husbandry; behavior; conservation; veterinary medicine; anatomy; physiology; training; population trends; and the effects of pollution, climate change, and noise.

Aquatic Mammals would like to thank the University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Library staff for their help in allowing extended loan of old AM volumes for the purposes of creating the PDFs now found on the Aquatic Mammals website.