Notice to Contributors
ECOTROPICA is a refereed journal covering all aspects of tropical ecology. Papers submitted shall reflect the results of original research (major papers, short communications) or review important fields in tropical ecology. Color plates may be included. Page charges are not required for contributors to ECOTROPICA, but compensations for printing expenses will be appreciated.
All persons interested in publishing in ECOTROPICA are kindly asked to send their manuscripts to ECOTROPICA, Elisabeth Kalko and Marco Tschapka, Dept. Experimental Ecology (Bio3) University of Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, D-89069 Ulm, Germany, email: ecotropica[-aet-]uni-ulm.de.

General shape
Manuscripts intended for publication in ECOTROPICA may be submitted electronically as PDF- or MS-Word files sent to ecotropica[-aet-]uni-ulm.de. Please prepare your manuscript as one file with the following order: main text, legends to figures and tables, tables, figures. In case this is not possible, please contact the co-editors before submission. Alternatively, manuscripts may be submitted as paper copies in triplicate accompanied by a diskette or CD containing all the material of the paper. Use American English. Type the text, tables, legends and references double-spaced with at least 3 cm margins. Put the authors’ name in the upper right-hand corner of every page. Number pages through the list of references. Avoid footnotes. Provide a concise title, and an abridged title for a running head. Tables should be included only if they are necessary, using text or illustrations where possible. Put each table on a separate unnumbered page. Legends for all figures and tables should be typed on a separate unnumbered page. Material in the tables or graphs should not be repeated in the text. Write mathematical formulas on one line where possible.

Extent
Major papers should have an abstract designed to acquaint readers with the essential points of the text. It should contain no more than 300 words and should be suitable for use by abstracting services. In addition, no more than 10 key words should be provided at the end of the abstract. Manuscripts intended to be Short Communications should be 8 typed pages or less, not including figures and tables. They require key words but no abstract; otherwise they are organized as major articles.

Measurements
Use the metric system in text, figures and tables. Designate clock in 24-h system and write it as 06:30 h or 20:00 h. Use the European system of calendar notation (e.g. 4 December 2002)

Illustration
All illustrative material should be arranged in the form of figures, each with an arabic number. Line drawings, e.g., graphs, maps, drawing, should be designed for reduction at least one-half. Try to plan illustrations for a single column. Use mechanical lettering devices or adhesive transfer letters. Typewriter or dot matrix printing is generally not acceptable. Include a key to symbols in the illustration unless the symbols can be described in the legend. Photographs must be sharp and of good contrast, showing details in important areas. In case of electronic submission, photos have to be sent additionally to the complete manuscript as separate jpg – files with a resolution of at least 300 dpi at final size, all clearly named with the respective figure number, e.g. Fig.-3.jpg. Photographs and paintings can be published in color; ask the co-editors for details. Write the authors name and figure number on the back of each photograph, using a soft pencil, never a ball point pen. Use a protective overlay for photographs submitted.

Citations
Make sure that all citations in the text are listed at the end of the paper, and that all papers listed have been cited. In-text citations of publications by three or more authors should be in the form”Buckley et al.” Consult a recent issue of ECOTROPICA for details of citations. For general matters of English style, please consult the “CBE Style Manual”, 1983, 5th edition, Council of Biology Editors, Inc., 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA.
Proofs and typescript will normally be sent to the senior author by email as a pdf-file. Please inform the co-editors well in advance of any change in address or system for handling proofs. Check proofs carefully against typescript for errors. Corrections will be made without charge but author revisions of proofs will be charged to the author at US $ 5.00 per revision line. Return proofs and typescript one week after receipt. Order reprints when returning proofs. Authors receive 30 reprints of major articles or short communications free of charge.For information on structure of papers and on style of the References section, please download the following sample files: Major paperShort Communication.