Journal profile · Marine & Freshwater Biology
Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems
ISSN 1052-7613 · eISSN 1099-0755 · John Wiley and Sons Ltd · ENGLAND · Bimonthly · Founded 1991
Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems: CAS Zone 3 · Environmental Science & Ecology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.51; hybrid open access; APC about USD 4,730; median 178 days to acceptance (106 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 283 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems is published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd and is in Zone 3 of Environmental Science & Ecology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Fish Ecology and Management Studies, Marine and fisheries research and Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies, together about 34.6% of its articles. Its main subfields are Ecology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Submit your manuscript to Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems! Journal scope Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems is an international journal dedicated to the multidisciplinary science of conservation in all aquatic ecosystems – freshwater, brackish and marine. In doing so, we provide a nexus for discussion of aquatic conservation issues across systems and disciplines. Reflecting the global relevance of aquatic conservation, we accept contributions from around the world and across all sectors (research, industry, policy, and more), ensuring a worldwide representation of aquatic conservation issues. Local to global scale research is considered, from both practical and theoretical perspectives. Manuscripts that transcend across aquatic systems, species and / or location and with a forward-looking perspective are especially encouraged. Our definition of ‘conservation relevance’ is wide-ranging and inclusive across disciplines, broadly including the social, ecological, environmental and engineering sciences and humanities. Examples include (but are not limited to): Theoretical principles underlying conservation Drivers of change in the conservation status of species, communities and habitats Protected areas, spatial planning and ecosystem management and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) Innovation and technological development in conservation methods Species and habitat restoration Conservation genetics, including eDNA Legislation, policy and conservation law Ecosystem service provision, ecosystem function Conservation economics, conservation finance, blue economy Conservation and wildlife management ethics Community and stakeholder engagement, environmental anthropology, indigenous knowledge and practices Aquatic geo-conservation, including groundwater systems, geodiversity, geoheritage ‘Blue’ nature-based solutions, e.g. blue carbon, flood protection, water quality Impact and management of alien invasive species Multidisciplinary solutions to conservation issues Implications of the inter-relationship between aquatic ecosystems for their conservation Climate adaptation and resilience building Human impacts on the conservation of aquatic species, habitats and waterscapes Conservation aquaculture Presubmission enquiries are welcomed if you are unsure about the suitability of your manuscript for Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems. Presubmission enquiries should be sent directly to th
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Marine & Freshwater Biology
Editor-in-chief Heidi BurdettPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 3 in mainland China (about 9%); most named United States 4, United Kingdom 4, Mainland China 3, South Africa 3, Sweden 2 (34 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Fish Ecology and Management StudiesEnvironmental Science15.8%
- Marine and fisheries researchEnvironmental Science9.9%
- Coral and Marine Ecosystems StudiesEnvironmental Science8.9%
- Marine animal studies overviewEnvironmental Science6.9%
- Aquatic Invertebrate Ecology and BehaviorEnvironmental Science5.3%
- Fish Biology and Ecology StudiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.9%
- Marine and coastal plant biologyEarth and Planetary Sciences4.3%
- Ichthyology and Marine BiologyEnvironmental Science4.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceCAB AbstractsCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: EBSCO, AGRICOLA
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
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
- 2.51LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 2.5Publisher website ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 3.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 3.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.7LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.95LetPub ·
- h-index
- 69LetPub ·
- h-index
- 115OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 2,130OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.14OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 8%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 47.71%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 231LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 240Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 410,441Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 4,157 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 198 | 121 | 43 |
| 2025 | 283 | 186 | 458 |
| 2024 | 241 | 167 | 1,045 |
| 2023 | 156 | 110 | 1,121 |
| 2022 | 161 | 62 | 1,476 |
| 2021 | 282 | 89 | 4,050 |
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
178 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 112 days – 256 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 22 days (106 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 201 days
- Sample
- 106 articles with submission and acceptance dates (494 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)
- 18–36 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 41%Publisher website ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 41%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 25 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 25 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 168 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 19 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewPublisher 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 4,730 / EUR 3,930 / GBP 3,170 | — | — | |
| 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)
What to prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Reference style
- Harvard
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Cover letter
- Optional
Article types accepted5
- articleArticle Articles present the results of a complete research study. Meta-analyses are characterized as Articles.Length not stated
- editorialThe acceptance criteria for all papers are the quality and originality of the research and its relevance to journal readership. Except where otherwise stated, m…Length not stated
- policy briefPolicy Brief Policy Briefs provide a public forum for presentation of conservation issues relevant to contemporary policy.Length not stated
- reviewReview A review is a comprehensive and balanced overview of a research field that is of current interest to aquatic conservation research at local to global sca…Length not stated
- short communicationsShort Communications Short Communications are concise reports that present interesting results that, while not constituting the full scope of an Article, are st…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, Preprints
- AI use The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI use must be disclosed; AI tools cannot be listed as authors. Model summary
In the interest of transparency and academic integrity, authors must disclose any use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools during the preparation of their manuscript – we require this to be presented as an explicit “Use of Artificial Intelligence” statement, together with a suite of other Ethics and Integrity statements. This includes, but is not limited to, AI-assisted writing, editing, data ana…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship
On initial submission, the submitting author will be prompted to provide the email address and country for all contributing authors. Please refer to the journal’s Authorship policy in the Editorial Policies and Ethical Considerations section for details on author listing eligibility.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Conflict of Interest Statement
Authors will be asked to provide a conflict of interest statement during the submission process. For details on what to include in this section, see the ‘Conflict of Interest’ section in the Editorial Policies and Ethical Considerations section below. Submitting authors should ensure they liaise with all co-authors to confirm agreement with the final statement.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Sharing and Data Availability
This journal expects data sharing. Review Wiley’s Data Sharing policy where you will be able to see and select the data availability statement that is right for your submission.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Publication Ethics
COPE member; uses iThenticate CrossCheck for plagiarism detection. Model summary
This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Note this journal uses iThenticate’s CrossCheck software to detect instances of overlapping and similar text in submitted manuscripts. Read Wiley’s Top 10 Publishing Ethics Tips for Authors here. Wiley’s Publication Ethics Guidelines can be found here.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprints on non-commercial servers considered for review. Model summary
Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems will consider for review articles previously available as preprints on non-commerical servers. Authors may also post the submitted version of a manuscript to non-commercial servers are requested to update any pre-publication versions with a link to the final published article.
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
- John Wiley and Sons Ltd
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1991
- ISSN
- 1052-7613
- Electronic ISSN
- 1099-0755
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 36, Issue 9 (September 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems
What CAS zone is Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems is in Zone 3 of Environmental Science & Ecology, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Marine & Freshwater Biology / Water Resources / Environmental Sciences. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Environmental Science & Ecology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.51; CiteScore 3.6, h-index 115.
How long does peer review take at Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems?
Based on the dates recorded on 106 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 178 days (interquartile range 112–256 days); authors report an average review time of 18–36 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 41% (2025). 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.
What are the manuscript requirements of Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Reference style: Harvard; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Cover letter: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems based?
Of the 34 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 3 (about 9%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (4), United Kingdom (4) and Mainland China (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science, CAB Abstracts and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems open access, and what is the APC?
Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 4,730.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .