The Catalogue (Print ISSN: 2325-4882; Online ISSN: 2325-5021) consists of accounts of taxa prepared by specialists, including synonymy, description, diagnosis, phylogenetic relationships, published descriptions, illustrations, distribution map, and comprehensive list of literature for each taxon. Over 900 accounts have been published since the initiation of the series in 1963. The series covers amphibians and reptiles of the entire Western Hemisphere. Previously, accounts were published as loose-leaf separates; beginning in 2013 accounts are published as on-line PDFs.
All accounts are open access and are available for free download at the University of Texas Library Repository.
If you are interested in writing an account, please contact the co-editors (Chris Bell: cjbell@jsg.utexas.edu; Travis LaDuc: travieso@austin.utexas.edu) to determine taxon availability and please consult the Instructions to CAAR Authors posted below. There are no accounts for many species, and updates of existing accounts are encouraged as well – many of the accounts are now over 25 years old and herpetological literature has increased exponentially!
Original printed copies of Catalogue accounts may be purchased:
CATALOGUE ACCOUNTS:
Complete set: Numbers 1–840, $450.00.
Partial sets: Numbers 1–190, $65.00.
Numbers 191–410, $75.00.
Numbers 411–840, $310.00.
INDEXES TO ACCOUNTS:
Numbers 1–400: Cross-referenced, 64 pages, $6.00.
Numbers 401–600: Cross-referenced, 32 pages, $6.00.
Numbers 601–800: Cross-referenced, 36 pages, $6.00.
IMPRINTED POST BINDER: $35.00. (Note: one binder holds about 200 accounts.)
SYSTEMATIC TABS: Ten printed tabs for binder, such as “Class Amphibia,” “Order Caudata,” etc., $6.00 per set.
All Catalogue accounts are also available as open-access free downloads through the University of Texas Library Repository.
INSTRUCTIONS TO CAAR AUTHORS
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
A Catalogue Account constitutes a summary of the taxonomy of a given taxon and a detailed and comprehensive overview of the literature concerning that taxon. The author’s first task is to become cognizant of as much of the literature on the taxon in question as is reasonably possible. However, the Catalogue as a whole is a dynamic entity and accounts should be as much a stimulus to future research as they are definitive summaries of the published knowledge concerning a particular taxon. The Catalogue is read and used by a wide audience, both in and out of academia. Therefore, what is not known about a taxon is often as important to note as what is published.
Note that the Catalogue does not publish taxonomic innovations; any such innovations should be published elsewhere and cited in the account.
Using the following guidelines, prepare a double-spaced draft of your ms in MS Word, including captions for the map(s) and any illustration(s), for submission to the editors.The entire document, including all sections, should be double-spaced. All drafts and communications will be electronically delivered.
I. FORMAT:
TAXONOMIC HEADINGS: Do not abridge the author’s surname, add initials if confusion is likely. Enclose the author’s name in parentheses if the species-group name is now associated with a genus other than that in which it was originally described. Give vernacular names as listed in the most recent edition of Standard English Common Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding, 7th Edition (2012, SSAR HerpetologicalCircular No. 39). Under ADDITIONAL VERNACULAR NAMES include additional names that are in use in all or part of the geographic range of the taxon. Inclusion of vernacular names should be included for recognized subspecies.
SYNONYMY: The synonymy should include all new names and all new combinations of names arranged in chronological order. Other permutations, including those published irregularly, erroneously, or incorrectly, should be included. Use no punctuation between the name of a taxon and the name of the original describer, but separate with a colon the authors of other permutations from the name.
Give the type locality as an exact quote (in quotation marks) from the original description. Follow with translation into English if necessary, and insert (in brackets, [ ] )any necessary clarifying remarks. Give any subsequent restrictions, designations, or significant modifications. Give data for holotype or equivalent specimens of both recognized and synonymized taxa. Include ontogenetic age (e.g., adult, juvenile), sex, institution of deposit, catalogue number, collector’s name, and date of collection for each specimen. Explain any gaps that exist in the data (e.g., “collector unknown”). Insert “not examined by author(s)” or “examined by author(s)” in parentheses at the end of the entry.
In generic synonymies, give the type species and state the mode of selection (e.g., “by monotypy,” “by subsequent designation,” with citation). Follow similar procedures for higher categories.
Annotations giving the nomenclatural status of the name and the reasons changes were proposed are important. Short explanations should be included in the synonymy; longer ones belong in REMARKS or NOMENCLATURAL HISTORY. Annotations must be explicit.
CONTENT: State the number of subcategories recognized (subspecies in a species account, species in a generic account, etc.) and list them. If clarification is necessary, refer to REMARKS or COMMENT.
DESCRIPTION: The description is a series of comparative statements which enables the reader to distinguish between the taxon in question and others with which it may be confused (i.e., sympatric congeners). Include references to juveniles or larvae, where pertinent. The description should provide a full characterization of the taxon, including comments on known variations.
DIAGNOSIS: The diagnosis is a list of characteristics, preferably apomorphic features, by which the taxon is recognized and uniquely distinguished. Statements must be objective to be useful; e.g., do not use “medium-sized” unless a size range also is given. Limit statements to those actually diagnosing the taxonomic level under consideration;family characteristics belong in familial accounts, etc. Include references to juveniles or larvae, where pertinent.
PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS: This section will include summary statements regarding, and relevant citations to, all hypothesized phylogenetic relationships of the taxon.
PUBLISHED DESCRIPTIONS: Give citations to available descriptions. Provide descriptive material, including life-history stages, where pertinent. If descriptions of life history stages other than adult cannot be cited, explain why. In anuran accounts, a description of the mating call is appropriate. Audio spectrograms of anuran mating calls shall be included whenever possible. Include measurable quantities, such as dominant frequency, duration, and pulse rate.
ILLUSTRATIONS: Cite published illustrations, including those of anatomical features and life-history stages other than adult. If published illustrations are lacking, state that explicitly. Although many illustrations are available online, most webpages are viewed as ephemeral in nature and should be avoided as citations. If critical illustrations are found only in electronic sources, they can be cited, but no more than 10 different pages can be cited using the format described in LITERATURE CITED.
DISTRIBUTION: Provide a statement of geographic range, including a list of countries, states, and counties (where appropriate) in which the taxon is found. State the source or authority for any unusual, isolated, or otherwise noteworthy records. Previously unpublished distributional information may be included when accompanied with specimen voucher numbers. Statements on elevational, ecological, or other habitat limitations are desirable. Include citations of other pertinent distributional studies and illustrations of geographic range(s).
FOSSIL RECORD: Summarize available data on the fossil record of the taxon. Include both geographic and temporal distribution. References to extinct species hypothesized to be closely related to extant forms not known from fossils may be given.
PERTINENT LITERATURE: Citations of comprehensive works on the taxon should be listed first. Other citations are best grouped according to particular aspects of biology of the taxon. Within each group, all citations must be in alphabetical order, including accounts with a voluminous literature. Avoid unnecessary duplication of citations listed in other sections of the account. Although discussion of the literature is not prohibited, preference is for citations to be listed after key words, which are in bold (see, for example, account 663, Necturus punctatus, 1998).
KEY: Accounts of taxa other than species should include keys to contained forms. When a published Catalogue account exists for an included form, it should be noted and the account number given in parentheses following the taxon name.
NOMENCLATURAL HISTORY (optional): Statements required to clarify the use of a name or to detail its history are assembled under this heading.
REMARKS (optional): Published information not presented elsewhere is included here.
ETYMOLOGY: Give the origin, derivation, and meaning of any names used in the account. List the Latin, Greek, or other word from which the name is derived, not merely “from the Latin.” In generic accounts, give gender. Distinguish between your inferences and previously published statements.
ADDITIONAL VERNACULAR NAMES: List local vernacular names when known, including those in different languages.
COMMENT (optional): In other sections, data must come from the literature. Here, authors may address whatever points merit discussion. Unpublished information or ideas are appropriate, if documented, but extensive important data must be published elsewhere. Use separate paragraphs for each topic.
One item must be included: If a diversity of opinion exists among authorities regarding the systematics employed in the account, all opinions must be stated and, insofar as feasible, arguments (or citations) for alternative opinions should be provided. Catalogue readers should be aware of the full range of authoritative opinion.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT(S) (optional): Listings here should be as concise as possible.
LITERATURE CITED: Authors are encouraged to be anal retentive in the preparation of this section. Note that a comma does not separate names of two authors, but serial commas should be used when more than two authors are listed. All citations should be as complete as possible. Issue numbers should be included for irregularly published issues/volumes and any time issues are independently paginated. Page numbers for books, theses, and dissertations should be provided. If plates or other illustrations were published independently of paginated portions, that should be indicated. Do not use any abbreviations in the literature cited. Use n-dashes, not hyphens, for page ranges. Note that one space should be inserted between authors’ initials and only one space is inserted between different parts of the citation (e.g., author’s name and date).
Article in a book:
Brown, G. W., Jr. 1964. The metabolism of Amphibia. Pp. 54–98 in Physiology of the Amphibia (J.A. Moore, ed.). Academic Press, New York, New York.
Book:
Villa, J., L. D. Wilson, and J. D. Johnson. 1988. Middle American Herpetology: A Bibliographic Checklist.University of Missouri Press, Columbia, Missouri. 132 pp.
Journal article:
Case, S. M. and M. H. Wake. 1977. Immunological comparisons of caecilian albumin (Amphibia:Gymnophiona). Herpetologica 33:93–97.
Davis, D. D. 1953. Behavior of the lizard Corythophanes cristatus. Fieldiana: Zoology 35:1–8, plates 1–3.
Hellmich, W. 1934. Die eidechsen Chiles, insbesondere die Gattung Liolaemus nach den Sammlung
Goetsch-Hellmich. Abhandlungen der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Mathematischnaturwissenschaftliche Abteilung, Neue Folge, 24:1-140, Plates 1-2.
Rose, F. L. 1967. Seasonal changes in lipid levels of the salamander, Amphiuma means. Copeia 1 967:622–666.
Rose, F. L. and H. L. Lewis. 1968. Changes in weight and free fatty acid concentration of fat bodies of paedogenic Ambystoma tigrinum during vitellogenesis. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 16:149–154.
Smith, N. J. H. 1975. Destructive exploitation of the South American river turtle. Chelonia 2(5):3–9.
Article comprising entire Volume or Number:
Cochran, D. M. 1941. The Herpetology of Hispaniola. Bulletin of the United States National Museum 177.i–vii + 398 pp.
Theses/Dissertations:
Harrison, C. R. 1992. A Taxonomic Revision of the Snakes in the Coniophanes piceivittis Species Group. M.S. Thesis, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas. 66 pp.
For online references, use WebCite® (webcitation.org) to archive the web site. Provide the regular citation, followed by the archival site provided by the service
Frost, D. R. 2004. Anaxyrus houstonensis (Sanders, 1953) | Amphibian species of the world: an online reference. Available at http://research.amnh.org/vz/herpetology/amphibia/? action=references&id=2431. Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6Dtyj8Im4) on 23 January 2013.
Most websites are considered to be ephemeral in nature; their use in an account must be relevant and justifiable. Exceptions to this transient stability are those publications that lack a hard copy archive and instead are published online with an implicit commitment to long-term storage. Authors should contact the editors with any questions regarding citations of online sources.
Species accounts will normally include these sections in the following order: TAXONOMIC HEADING, SYNONYMY, CONTENT, DESCRIPTION, DIAGNOSIS, PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS, PUBLISHED DESCRIPTIONS, ILLUSTRATIONS, DISTRIBUTION, FOSSIL RECORD, PERTINENT LITERATURE, and ETYMOLOGY. NOMENCLATURAL HISTORY, REMARK(S), ADDITIONAL VERNACULAR NAME(S), COMMENT(S), and ACKNOWLEDGMENT(S) sections are optional and included as necessary, the first two preceding, the latter following the etymology section. If no published information exists on a particular topic (e.g., FOSSIL RECORD), the heading must be included and a statement to that effect made.
In accounts dealing with taxa containing subspecies, the subspecific accounts will follow the etymology section (or comment, if included), will be numbered, and will be arranged in alphabetical order, except for the nominate subspecies, which always shall be listed first. Normally subspecific accounts will have only TAXONOMIC HEADING, SYNONYMY, DESCRIPTION and DIAGNOSIS sections; REMARK(S) may be included as necessary.
Generic accounts and those dealing with higher taxa will have all of the headings of a species account and, in addition, a KEY TO SPECIES (or genera, etc.) section inserted after Pertinent Literature (see CAAR Account 471, Ficimia). In generic accounts published with species accounts, references to the generic or species account(s) may be used in lieu of repeating text (see CAAR Account 472, Hydromorphus, H. concolor, H. dunni). A similar approach may be used in, for example, combined family and genericaccounts.
The LITERATURE CITED section will follow all other sections in all accounts.
BASIC STYLE POINTS
- Always use complete sentences, even in the description and diagnosis sections; do not use telegraphic style.
- Use past tense when citing references, e.g., “Wilson (1948) listed …” If author’s name and date are enclosed in parentheses, e.g., (Powell et al., 1996), separate them with a comma.
- Do not begin a sentence with an abbreviation.
- Use serial commas, e.g., “yellow, purple, and green…”
- Formal common names shall be capitalized.
- State names should be spelled out (except at the end of the account in the author’s address, where the two-letter postal abbreviation should be used).
- Do not hyphenate type locality, type species, etc.
- SVL = snout-vent length, TL = total length, CL = carapace length.
- Except when in a direct quote or in a title (e.g., when not used by the original author), diacritical marks and capitalization shall follow the rules of the language used (i.e.,México, deutsche Schildkröten, etc.).
- Terms such as lapsus, fide, etc. should be italicized; i.e., e.g., et al., and per se should not.
- References in the text to maps or figures are necessary only when specific information is discussed.
- Avoid “there is…” or “it would seem that …” These phrases lack antecedents. Refer to the CBE Style Manual in cases where usage is in doubt (CBE Style Manual Committee. 1994. Scientific Style and Format: The CBE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers. Cambridge University Press, New York, New York. 825 pp).
- Spell out numbers at beginning of sentences. Spell out single digit numbers except as units of measure or in giving counts (e.g., 7 mm, 0–4 tubercles).
- The account author’s surname and initials will be used above the taxonomic center heading at the top of the left column on page one. The author’s full name may be used at the end of the account.
II. Along with the manuscript, authors must prepare a distribution map. Map(s) must be publication quality. Clearly mark type localities of recognized forms (not synonymized taxa) and any fossil localities. For species accounts, mark all accurate locality records and indicate a range outline. For taxa other than species, only a range outline and fossil localities shall be indicated. In any case, the range outline should not merely enclose dots, but accurately reflect the distribution of the taxon (e.g., follow river systems in the case of aquatic forms). If uncertainties exist, mark them with question marks and note their meaning in the caption.
A. 1) Use large circles for type localities. If the type locality is unknown or too imprecise to plot, note this in the caption.
2) Use dots for other localities.
3) Mark fossil sites with stars.
4) Use of other symbols must be justified; e.g., more than one taxon (see CAAR Account 480, Ungaliophis, U. continentalis, U. panamensis) or nesting versus other locality records (see CAAR Accounts 482, Caretta, and 483, Caretta caretta).
5) Include a scale bar, particularly important for species with limited distributions (see CAAR Account 300, Anolis roosevelti and CAAR Account 610, Anolis brevirostris).
B. Unless too few localities exist for a reasonable estimate, outline the best estimate of
the total range and of any subspecific ranges (see below)
C. If subspecies are named:
1) Number the ranges in the order the subspecies appear in the text (alphabetically except for the nominate ssp.).
2) Be sure that disjunct areas are properly numbered.
3) Delineate areas of intergradation clearly.
III. Submit pertinent illustrations with the ms. Only in rare instances will accounts be published without illustrations. Photographs or line drawings of historical interest, or those not readily available elsewhere are particularly suitable. If any questions exist regarding the use of an illustration, consult the editor. If photographs are submitted, high quality digital images are preferred. Color illustrations and line drawings are welcome, but they must be submitted as digital files to the editor. Unless absolutely necessary, do not submit previously published photographs or illustrations. If any illustration submitted was previously published and is covered by copyright laws, copyright clearance is the responsibility of the author(s). Author(s) must notify the editor regarding the status of that request at the time the illustration is submitted.
PROOFS: Page proofs will be provided prior to publication. The author(s) should review the text, the map, and all illustrations for accuracy and proper placement. No charges are made for corrections, necessary changes, or additions, but please consider the consequences of any alterations; even subtle adjustments may cause major problems with format. Minor changes in the text that should have been made previously in consultation with the editor will not be made at this stage of production.
REPRINTS: No hard copies will be issued to authors. Authors will receive a PDF at the time of publication.
Updated February 2017
SSAR Publications may be purchased from:
Cari-Ann M. Hickerson Publications Secretary John Carroll University Department of Biology 1 John Carroll Blvd University Heights, OH 44118 Email: ssarpubsec@gmail.com Phone: (216) 403-3256