写在 Wildlife Letters 创刊一年半之际

Wildlife Letters has been publishing high-quality papers for a year and a half. In creating the journal, a major aim was to improve access to high-quality publishing and relevant up-to-date research for researchers and conservation practitioners around the world, including those in biodiversity-rich less-developed countries. Our open-access publishing model helps to achieve this and included in the first six issues of Wildlife Letters are papers from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Costa Rica, and several countries in Asia, as well as Australia, Europe, and North America. Contributions have included investigations of wildlife habituation during the COVID-19 lockdown, perceptions of African high school students to wildlife conservation, mitigation of human–wildlife conflict, improved survey methods, and several papers about genetic diversity, conservation, and adaptation. Our purpose in writing this editorial is to highlight new developments in the journal, calls for papers for special issues, and other opportunities for the journal.

INTRODUCING FORUM ARTICLES: GET THE CONVERSATION GOING!

In the interest of creating lively discussion, we have added Forum and Forum Reply article types. They provide a venue for the publication of expert opinions, summarize current understanding, give updates on the status of fast-moving subject areas, or give guidance on how practice in management or conservation should be undertaken. If you have an idea for a topic that needs clarification in the literature or where misinformation is common, we encourage you to consider writing an article or contacting us if you want to check with us about an idea for a possible topic. Forum articles are a maximum of 2500 words, making them short and succinct. We look forward to receiving manuscripts that provide insightful updates and help to guide management and conservation.

ANNOUNCING OUR EARLY CAREER EDITORIAL BOARD

The journal is soon to launch an “Early Career Editorial Board” with the aim of getting advanced PhD students and early-career researchers (within 5 years of having received their PhD) involved in guiding conservation and wildlife science. The main aims are to introduce early career researchers to peer review of manuscripts for publication, to assist them in learning from the advice and guidance of others in the publication process, to lend their expertise to highlight and improve the content of important and outstanding published papers, and to help promote the journal. We envisage that working with the journal will help these early career researchers in their journey to becoming excellent scientists and editors. Check the journal home page for a link to apply to join the board and the requirements. We will accept applicants with achieving a balance of subject, geographical coverage, and inclusivity in mind.

CALLS FOR PAPERS FOR UPCOMING SPECIAL ISSUES

Currently, the journal has two calls for article submissions for Special Issues:

Managing Human–Wildlife Conflict in Big Cats highlights the latest developments in this topic. Some large cats are dangerous to humans, and all compete with people for space and food through killing livestock, or even injuring local people. Such conflicts can harm big cat conservation, and we seek papers that identify and frame how human–big cat coexistence can be achieved through managing conflict. The special issue focuses on looking at conflict, its drivers, and hidden costs.

Impact of Diseases on Wildlife Conservation and Management. The topic is timely with numerous studies showing the potential for pathogens to cause partial or permanent population declines, the rapid growth in the number of parasites and pathogenic organisms that have been described, our growing understanding of pathogen transmission and the effects at levels from populations to whole ecosystems and geographic ranges. We seek submissions of original studies that describe the impact of diseases on the growth, maintenance, reproduction, dispersion, distribution, and survival of wildlife to understand and respond to current and emerging challenges to wildlife from global and anthropogenic change.

SOME TOPICS WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE OF PUBLISHED IN WILDLIFE LETTERS

Despite the journal's success in publishing a wide range of articles in wildlife and conservation science, some gaps remain. Many articles that the journal receives are direct reports about the effects of human activities, climate change and land use change on wildlife, and give recommendations for managers, conservation practitioners, and policy makers to address problems. These topics are appropriate and needed in wildlife conservation. However, we are also keen to see more articles about conservation policy. Potential topics include the application or evaluation of policy to conservation, and gaps between scientific knowledge and policy application or development. We would also like to see more articles about the science of rewilding, spatial land-use planning, and evaluating or valuing the ecosystem services provided by wild animals. The majority of articles published to date in the journal have been at the level of species, small groups of species or overall biodiversity, and few have covered ecosystem implications or large geographical scales. Finally, Wildlife Letters has published a few methods papers but there is scope to publish modern and improved methods that are statistical, analytical, or survey methods. We encourage the submission of Method articles. The journal also has received relatively few manuscripts from Europe, Asia outside of China and India, and South America. We would like the journal to cover wildlife science and its application to conservation and management worldwide.

More generally, if you have ideas for articles, special issues or features, or reviews, or want to apply to be a member of “Early Career Editorial Board,” or things you would like to see in the journal, please reach out to us via our editorial office [email protected]