Journal profile · MARINE & FRESHWATER BIOLOGY
African Journal of Aquatic Science
ISSN 1608-5914 · eISSN 1727-9364 · Taylor and Francis Ltd. · SOUTH AFRICA · Semiannual
African Journal of Aquatic Science: CAS Zone 4 · Environmental Science & Ecology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.91; hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 255 days to acceptance (57 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: easy; 28 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
African Journal of Aquatic Science is published by Taylor and Francis Ltd. and is in Zone 4 of Environmental Science & Ecology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Fish Biology and Ecology Studies, Aquatic Ecosystems and Biodiversity and Fish Ecology and Management Studies, together about 42% of its articles. Its main subfields are Ecology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The African Journal of Aquatic Science is an international journal devoted to the study of the aquatic sciences, covering all African inland and estuarine waters. The Journal publishes peer-reviewed original scientific papers and short articles in all the aquatic science fields including limnology, hydrobiology, ecology, conservation, biomonitoring, management, water quality, ecotoxicology, biological interactions, physical properties and human impacts on African aquatic systems.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): MARINE & FRESHWATER BIOLOGY
Editor-in-chief Nick Rivers-MoorePublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Fish Biology and Ecology StudiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences14.3%
- Aquatic Ecosystems and BiodiversityEnvironmental Science14.3%
- Fish Ecology and Management StudiesEnvironmental Science13.5%
- Aquatic Ecosystems and Phytoplankton DynamicsEnvironmental Science8.1%
- Aquatic Invertebrate Ecology and BehaviorEnvironmental Science6%
- Water Quality and Pollution AssessmentEnvironmental Science5.9%
- Freshwater macroinvertebrate diversity and ecologyEnvironmental Science5.6%
- Marine and fisheries researchEnvironmental Science3.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- CiteScore Q2 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 0.91LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.9Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.5LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.5Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.35LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.35Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.4LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 0.4Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 23LetPub ·
- h-index
- 52OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 454OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.18OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 11.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 24.73%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 28LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 21,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,148 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 26 | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | 28 | 10 | 22 |
| 2024 | 34 | 16 | 82 |
| 2023 | 31 | 4 | 126 |
| 2022 | 35 | 11 | 183 |
| 2021 | 43 | 7 | 380 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
255 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 139 days – 405 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 58 days (57 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 329 days
- Sample
- 57 articles with submission and acceptance dates (69 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- over 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 18%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 53 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 98 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 73 daysPublisher website ·
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Article types accepted1
- editorialEditors-in-Chief Dr Nick Rivers-Moore - Centre for Water Resources Research, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa Dr Eliot Taylor - Atkin…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access
- Open access Open access
African Journal of Aquatic Science is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discover…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Taylor and Francis Ltd.
- Country or region
- SOUTH AFRICA
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Semiannual
- ISSN
- 1608-5914
- Electronic ISSN
- 1727-9364
- Society / sponsor
- Southern African Society of Aquatic Scientists
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 51, Issue 3 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about African Journal of Aquatic Science
What CAS zone is African Journal of Aquatic Science in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, African Journal of Aquatic Science is in Zone 4 of Environmental Science & Ecology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Marine & Freshwater Biology. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Environmental Science & Ecology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of African Journal of Aquatic Science?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 0.91; CiteScore 2.5, h-index 52.
How long does peer review take at African Journal of Aquatic Science?
Based on the dates recorded on 57 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 255 days (interquartile range 139–405 days); authors report an average review time of over 12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 18%. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Which databases index African Journal of Aquatic Science?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, African Journal of Aquatic Science is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is African Journal of Aquatic Science open access, and what is the APC?
African Journal of Aquatic Science is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .