BioControl status report 2014 Eric Wajnberg - Editor in Chief INRA - Sophia Antipolis - France wajnberg@sophia.inra.fr Status report of the situation of the journal 27 May 2014
Impact factor BioControl Impact Factor increases over the years. The journal is now in the top 10 journals on Entomology worldwide. 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Biological Control Biocontrol Science and Technology BioControl The new Impact Factor (2013) will be known next June. It should most likely be above 2.0 again. This is the result of a number of important editorial changes that have been done over the years.
MS flow During the period 2004-2013, we received an increasing number of MS per year 400 300 200 100 0 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 Also, the number of MS submitted in a year is obviously positively correlated with the IF of the previous year! 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 r=0.88 (p<0.001) 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5
MS flow During the last 4 years (2010-2013), we received 1870 MS (= about 39 MS/ month!). The distribution of MS over the different sub-disciplines remains constant over the years. Weeds Insect pathology Plant pathology Nematodes Predators Parasitoids 8.6% 6.9 % 19.1% 20.8 % 19.8 % 24.7 % 0 50 100 150 200 250 300
Among the 1870 MS: MS flow and acceptance rate 0 500 1000 1500 2000 Withdrawn Under evaluation Accepted Rejected before review Rejected after review 0.5% 0.9 % 14.5% 14.8 % 69.3 % This gives an overall rejection rate of 84.11% (slightly higher than in previous years)
Board of Associated Editors Several changes were made concerning the board of Associated Editors. Some Associated Editors were not so active, and have been replaced. There are currently 13 Associated Editors: Parasitoids: Dirk Babendreier (Switzerland, started in Dec. 2003) Torsten Meiners (Germany, started in Oct. 2006) Stefano Colazza (Italy, started in Sep. 2010) Predators: Patrick De Clerq (Belgium, started in Dec. 2005) Arne Janssen (The Netherlands, started in Jan. 2008) Insect Pathology: Helen Roy (UK, started in Feb. 2007) Nicolai Vitt Meyling (Denmark, started in Feb. 2012) Nematodes: Ralf-Udo Ehlers (Germany, started in Dec. 1997) Plant Pathology: Monica Höfte (Belgium, started in Feb. 2007) Jesus Mercado Blanco (Spain, started in May 2010) Choong-Min Ryu (South Korea, started in July 2011) Fouad Daayf (Canada, started in March 2014) Weeds: John K. Scott (Australia, started in Oct. 2006) IOBC Global, provides a small financial compensation for their large amount of work for the journal. This is really welcomed!
Main changes decided/done during the previous years The waiting time from MS submission to final decision was reduced drastically. 300 MS handling time (days) 250 200 150 100 0 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 We now use a full double-blind reviewing system (referees do not know the authors names; authors are submitting an anonymous MS). During 2008, we changed to a two-columns lay-out. 50 Associated Editors are now acknowledged for their work by mentioning their name on the published papers. During 2008, we started with a full-coloured cover for all issues.
Special Issues The first issue of volume 53 (= 2008) was a special issue on Harmonia axyridis. It was also produced as a hard cover book. It contains 19 papers (288 pages) written by a total of more than 50 scientists from European countries and the USA.
Special Issues (cont.) Issue number 4 of volume 56 (= 2011) was another special issue entitled Invasive Alien Arthropod Predators and Parasitoids: An Ecological Approach. It was also produced as a hard cover book. It contains 20 papers (324 pages) written by a total of almost 70 scientists from America, Asia, Australia and Europe.
Special Issues (cont.) Issue number 2 of volume 57 (= 2012) was an other special issue entitled Conserving Nature with Biological Control. The guest editors were: Roy G. van Driesche, Ted D. Center, Kevin M. Heinz & Mark S. Hoddle. It contains 17 chapters covering the three following topics: Benefits of biological control to conservation and ecosystem restoration. Technical aspects of understanding and managing risks of biological control programs. Understanding and minimizing risks.
Virtual Special Issues Springer offers us the possibility to publish Virtual Special Issues. A Virtual Special Issue is published on the web only. It contains papers that have already been published as normal articles in printed issues. It is a way to focus on specific hot topics, and should draw potential readers and citations. Such a Virtual Special Issue is currently under preparation. It will most likely be on the behaviour and life-history traits of predatory insects and their use in biological control.
Increasing the number of MS accepted per year So, we need to increase the number of accepted MS per year, without jeopardizing the quality of the journal. Hence, we should not do that by reducing our rejection rate! Special Issues are important in the life of the journal. They are also boosting the Impact Factor. The journal is thus looking for other Special Issues (suggestions are welcomed!). We should also attract more MS from all authors all over the world, especially but likely not only - IOBC members.