Recent
Ornithological Literature (ROL) is
a serial compilation of citations and abstracts from the worldwide scientific
literature that pertain to birds and the science of ornithology.The ROL deals chiefly with
periodicals, but also announces new and renamed journals and provides abstracts
of conference proceedings, reports, doctoral dissertations, and other serial
publications.The entries are prepared
by scientists who voluntarily scan journals for ornithological articles,
generally according to their geographic region and special scientific
interests.Papers dealing exclusively
with domestic birds and their husbandry are excluded, unless applicable to
non-domestic species.
The Recent
Ornithological Literature (ROL) was published for many years as a
printed supplement to The Auk, The Emu,
or The Ibis.In 1998, the
societies that publish those journals, the American Ornithologists’ Union,
the British Ornithologists’ Union, and Birds Australia (formerly
the Royal Australasian Ornithologists’ Union), decided to discontinue the
printed version and to switch to an online version instead.The last printed issue was No. 75, which
accompanied Auk 115 (2), April 1998, and Ibis 140 (3), July
1998.Starting with Issue 76, the ROL
has been posted on BIRDNET.Nos. 74 and
75 have also been posted and other recent back issues
will be posted as time permits.In 2000
a more sophisticated database was started by the BOU-ROL Database.
ABSTRACTORS WANTED
This
operation needs and welcomes additional abstractors.If you would like
to help, please contact your regional editor or the Managing Editor to learn
which journals lack coverage and to receive instructions for preparing entries.
FEEDBACK
We invite
comments on all aspects of the ROL.The
series has undergone revision to make it more useful ever since it began and it
is still open to improvement.Send your
suggestions to any of the editors listed below.
GENERAL INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS
ORGANIZATION OF ABSTRACTS
The
entries within each issue or batch are classified according to their main
subject field.Every subject has a code
number to aid searching (e.g., B316 = Territoriality & home
range).The Table of Contents for each
issue identifies the fields and subjects represented by entries in that
issue.Some of the subject codes include
a list of subordinate topics in order to indicate their scope, but such lists
are not inclusive.The fields and
subjects are arranged alphabetically except under “Paleornithology,”
where they are arranged chronologically.Within the ROL issue, entries are first sorted on subject
categories and then are listed alphabetically by authors.Papers that do not fit well into one of the
subtopics are placed directly under the main heading, e.g., “General”.The section “Avian biology and life history”
is for papers that deal with more than one major topic of a species (e.g.,
breeding habits and conservation, species' life history accounts).This section, as well as the “Distribution
and Avifaunas” section, is
subdivided geographically in order to aid in finding papers on particular
species.Only the first or second record
for a State, Province or country is included under “Distribution and Avifaunas;” included as well, are regional or taxa-specific summaries of distribution, significant
changes in breeding and wintering ranges, and related topics.
New
subtopics are added from time to time, but previously published issues will not
be revised and their entries will not be reclassified. Therefore, you may need
to search under different subtopics or under the main heading if you do not see
the specific subtopic for which you are looking.
SEARCHING THE ABSTRACTS
Subjects
listed in the Table of Contents are linked to the subject categories of
abstracts.Issues can be searched while
on the Internet.Go to your browser’s
Edit menu, choose Find (Ctrl + F), and enter the word or code number to search
for, i.e.,author, scientific name, subject code number, or
geographic region, as given in the Table of Contents.You may also find it helpful to search for
other key words or taxonomic synonyms, which are given at the end of many entries.
Search in every likely category for relevant articles.Each abstract is assigned to only one primary
subject code, but alternative subject codes are also given at the end of many
abstracts.While the entries have been
checked several times, spelling errors may remain, and these will thwart
searches.
At
this time, there is no online keyword-type search function for ROL Online.Entries can be
searched by downloading the document and using your word processor’s search
function (see instructions, below) to look for words, subject codes, etc.
We
encourage you to download issues, wholly or in part, so that they can be
searched off-line, using any word processor.In this manner you can also search more than one ROL at a time (which
you cannot do online).These issue
files may not remain available online forever, yet they should be useful
for many years, so by downloading you will have them for your own use.
Each
issue is available in PC Word and WordPerfect file versions.Macintosh versions are not provided at this
time.You can download the HTML version,
but it is likely to lose the formatting, making it difficult to read, and
downloading is likely to take a long time because the file is not
compressed.Most issues of the ROL will
take from 50 to 150 pages of paper, if printed using a relatively small pitch
size and narrow margin settings.
AUTHOR’S ADDRESS
Entries
include the primary author’s postal and e-mail addresses when these are given
in the original paper.In cases where a
secondary author has been designated to receive requests for information or
reprints, that person is indicated in the address section with his/her
initials.
REFORMATTING FOR DATABASES
Once a
file is downloaded, the entries can be reformatted for direct loading into most
databases by using simple search-and-replace or copy routines based upon the
basic ROL file format:
·Subject code is within
{curly braces} at the beginning of the entry and followed by a single space.
·Authors' names
(surname first for first author) coded in the Small
Capital of font attributes.
·Year of publication.
·Title, coded in
bold.Titles in [brackets] are
English translations; words in [brackets] are inserted by the ROL to clarify
the title.
·Name of publication (standard
BIOSIS abbreviation, if abbreviated), volume number, and pagination (issue
number not provided unless paginated separately).
·Author’s address, if
known, inside a set of parentheses; E-Mail address also included, when
available.
·1/M dash (—) [may be 3
hyphens in some downloadable file versions] followed by the abstract and/or
list of scientific names of birds.If
published in a non-English language, that is indicated, as well as the language
of any summary.
·Another 1/M dash [or 3
hyphens] and the abstractor’s initials if more than the scientific names are
provided.
·Alternative subject
codes and/or key words in { curly braces}.
·ROL issue number in
{curly braces} in case different files, or portions
thereof, are later merged.
·All scientific names in
titles and abstracts are in italics.All ranges of dates, pagination, etc., are identified with either an 1/N dash (–) or 2 hyphens, depending upon file version.
·Cautionary note: as with all such electronic materials, some exceptions to
the above formatting, as well as spellings of names and places, may have
escaped our extensive edits, for which we apologize.
COVERAGE
Since the
ROL strives for global and comprehensive reporting, we encourage users to
recommend to their regional editors periodicals that ought to be included.If you know of articles or serials that do
not appear to be routinely covered by ROL, please send reprints, entries, or
journal issues to the regional editor responsible for coverage of the geographical
area where they are published, or to the Managing Editor.
A log of
all serials and papers cited by ROL issues since early 1991 is available upon
request from the Managing Editor.Within
the log file, journals are listed alphabetically according to full title,
following the Serial Sources fo
BIOSIS Previews Database.Abbreviated titles (per BIOSIS list) are given for all journals and full
titles are also given in cases where the abbreviations may not be clear.For each vol. of the serial, the inclusive
pages of all the papers cited and the ROL issue in which they appeared are
given.As of June 20, 2002, approximately 1055 serials have been scanned since
1991.The log is available in a
spreadsheet file and is >500 KB in size.
DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS
The ROL
includes abstracts of doctoral dissertations, starting with those completed
since January
1, 1995.Authors who wish to have their dissertation
included should prepare an entry in ROL style and send it to one of the
regional editors.Submission via e-mail
or on a diskette (WP, RTF, or ASCII) is welcomed.Entries should include: author's name, year
of completion, title, "Ph.D. dissert.",
university name and location, (author's postal and e-mail addresses), and an
abstract.
Will Cresswell
(Palearctic [incl. Indian Subcontinent] Editor,
British Ornithologists’ Union), Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology,
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS,
UK.E-mail to: mwill.cresswell@zoo.ox.ac.uk
Robert Dowsett
(African Literature Editor), E-mail: Dowsett@aol.com
Jay M. Sheppard (Managing Editor,
American Ornithologists’ Union), 3359 Cranberry South, Laurel,
Maryland20724-2419, USA.E-mail: jmsheppar@aol.com
William K. Steele (Australasian
Editor: incl. Japan & Philippines, Birds Australia),415 Riversdale Road, East Hawthorn, Vic 3123, Australia.E-mail: research.projects@raou.com.au
Dr. James Vanden
Berge ( Nearctic Literature
Coeditor: North America & Hawaii, American Ornithologists’ Union),
E-mail: vandenberge@aol.com
GENERAL INFORMATION FOR PROSPECTIVE
ABSTRACTORS
Recent Ornithological Literature (ROL) is a compilation of abstracts that pertain to ornithology
and come from the periodic, worldwide scientific literature.The ROL depends upon a cadre of volunteer
abstractors and editors around the globe who scan and compile the material.We are constantly looking for more volunteers
to help in this effort.If you are
interested in helping in this volunteer effort, please contact one of the
editors.The more abstractors working on
this effort and the more serials that are regularly being scanned and
abstracted are what makes this such a valuable resource
for ornithologists around the world.Here is a little more insight into what would be involved in abstracting
for the ROL.
Worldwide there are about 125–175 abstractors scanning 500–700
serials.Each is responsible for all the
ornithological papers in a particular journal.Below is a list of serials not being currently scanned for the ROL that
have been covered in the past.This list is constantly changing, so some
serials not on the list may need an abstractor.Please examine it to see if there are any you regularly receive.
As an abstractor, it really boils down to your time, what your
interests might be, and what serials are accessible to you already.Most abstractors send about 10–50 abstracts
per year, a few do over 100, while others only 1–5.We can always use help on the many local
States/Provincial/Country journals, some of which you see on the current
list.If you read two or more languages,
there are many serials in non-English languages in need of scanning.You do not have to reside in the country in
which the journal is published.
The list of serials needing to be scanned is changing
regularly.Thus, picking from the list
should be done fairly soon.You will
have to have access to your assigned journals—personal subscriptions, library
copies, or colleagues who have the unusual journals coming to them.If you want some other journal not on
this list, we will have to see if it is already being scanned by somebody
elsewhere in the world (you might want to search our database to see if there
are any recent citations from that serial).
The wide ranges of fields and sources for the citations found in
the ROL are what makes this resource so valuable.We have covered serials dealing with art
history, languages, library science, urban design, mathematics, as well as
those more biological in nature—molecular biology, anatomy, vertebrate zoology,
wildlife management, pests, pesticides, genetics, botany, marine ecology,
climatology, entomology, etc., etc.You
name the field, we probably have had one or more
scanned.
Most of our abstractors are now using E‑Mail to correspond
and send in their material as ATTACHED, word processing files.It certainly does make contact, submissions
and processing by the editors a lot easier.
The ROL editors have prepared a set of instructions on format,
codes, and other useful information in preparing ROL abstracts.If you are still interested, PLEASE contact
the appropriate regional editor with your requested serial(s) to scan and for
further information.
Serials in Need of Abstractors (~250 listed)
African:
Bee-eater
BirdwatchSeychelles
DurbanMus.
Novit.
J. E. Afr.
N.H.S. & Nat. Mus.
Kenya Birds
Mirafra
Promerops
S. Afr. J. Wildl. Res.
S. Afr. J. Zool.
Vulture News
Nearctic (www=avail. online):
ActaProtozool.
Adv. Study Behav.
AFA (Am. Fed. Avicult.)Watchbird
Alabama Birdlife
Am. For.
Am. J. Physiol.
Am. J. Vet. Res.
Am. Mus. Novit.
Ann. Parasitol.
Hum. Comp.
Antarc. J. U. S.
Arch. Environ. Contam.Toxicol.
Arch. Nat. Hist.
Arct.Anthropol.
AZPA (Assoc. Zool.
Pks. Aquar.) Reg. Conf.
Proc.
Biol. Behav.
Biol. Oceanogr.www
BioScience
Bull. Enviorn.Contam.Toxicol.
Bull. Mar. Sci.www
Bull. TexasOrnithol.Soc.
California Fish Game
Caryologia
Continental Shelf Res.www
Contr. Sci. (Los
Angeles Co. Mus.)
Cryptozoology
Cytobios
Cytogenet.Cell Genet.
Deep-Sea Res.www
Ecography
Ecol. Monogr.
Écoscience (nee Nat. Can. (Quebec)) www
Environ. Monitor. Assess.
Environ. Res.
Estuarine Coastal Shelf Sci.www
Ethnology [Univ. Pittsburgh]
Ethology
Evol.Biol.
Folia Zool.
Game Bird Gazette
Genome
Hereditas
Horm.Behav.
Int. J. Parasitol.
Int. J. Remote Sens.
J. Alabama Acad. Sci.
J. Am. Soc. Hortic.Sci.
J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc.
J. Evol. Biol.
J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol.www
J. Fish. Biol.
J. Helminthol. Soc.Wash.
J. Hered.
J. Idaho Acad. Sci.
J. Louisiana Ornithol.
J. Mar. Res.www
J. Med. Vet. Mycol.
J. Mol. Evol.
J. Nat. Hist.
J. Plankton Res.www
J. Range Manage.
J. Soil Water Conserv.
J. Theoret. Biol.
J. Trop. Ecol.
Landscape Ecol.
Landscape Urban Plan.
Limnol.Oceanogr.www
Louisiana Dept. Wildl.Fish. Spec. Publ.
LouisianaOrnithol. Soc. News
Mammal Species
Mar. Biol.www
Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.www
Mar. Ecol.www
Mar. Mammal Sci.
Mem.NuttallOrnithol. Club
Miscl.Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan
Mol. Biol. Evol.
Monogr.Syst. Bot. Gard.
N. Am. J. Fish. Manage.
Nemouria
North. J. Appl. For.
Occas. Pap. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan
Occas. Pap. West.
Found. Vertebr.Zool.
Ornithol.Monogr.
Parasitology
Perspect.Ethol.
Photogram.Eng. Remote Sens.
Physiol. Behav.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila.
Proc. Annu. Meet.
Soc. Ecol. Restor.
Proc.Ark. Acad. Sci.
Proc. California Acad. Sci.
Proc. Helminthol.
Soc. Washington
Proc. Kentucky Acad. Sci.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.
Proc. Nova Scotia Inst. Sci.
Proc. Oklahoma Acad. Sci.
Proc. Vertebr. Pest Conf.
Remote Sens.
Environ.
Res. Explor.
Restoration Ecol.
Science (Washington, D.C.)
Scient.Mar.
Smithsonian Contrib. Zool.
Tchebec
Texas Birds
Texas J. Sci.
Trans. Illinois St. Acad. Sci.
Trans. Nebraska Acad. Sci.
Trans. Northeast. Sect.Wildl.Soc.
West. J. Appl. For.
Wisconsin Dept. Nat. Resour.
Tech. Bull.
Palearctic (last vol.):
ActaOrnithoecol. (2)
ActaZool. Sinica
ActaZoologicaLituanica
Almoraima (Revista de estudiosCampogibralterenos) (19 )
