Journal profile · Ornithology
AUK
ISSN 0004-8038 · eISSN 2732-4613 · Ornithological Societies of North America · UNITED STATES · Quarterly · Founded 1884
AUK: CAS Zone 3 · Biology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.62; hybrid open access; APC about USD 125; review about 53 days (submission to final decision, publisher); community-reported acceptance: about 95%; indexed in Scopus; the journal's website says it has moved to a new publisher.
The journal's website says it has moved to a new publisher: After receiving the abstract translation and DOI for your data archive, your manuscript will be transferred to Oxford University Press (OUP) for copy editing to conform to scientific, technical, stylistic, and grammatical standards and for typesetting. OUP will email you a link to sign your author license that you will need to sign and return as soon as possible. Source ↗Publisher website ·
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
AUK is published by Ornithological Societies of North America and is in Zone 3 of Biology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Avian ecology and behavior, Plant and animal studies and Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, together about 39.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are Ecology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Ornithology publishes original research from all parts of the globe that tests fundamental, scientific hypotheses through ornithological studies and advances our understanding of living or extinct bird species. Descriptive studies are considered if they present new taxonomic information about birds, such as scientifically rigorous descriptions of new species, or important discoveries that open novel avenues of fundamental, ornithological research. Ornithology has been published continuously since 1884 and was recently recognized as one of the 100 most influential journals of biology and medicine over the past 100 years. About the American Ornithological Society The American Ornithological Society is an international society devoted to advancing the scientific understanding of birds, enriching ornithology as a profession, and promoting a rigorous scientific basis for the conservation of birds. As the largest ornithological member-based society in the world, the society produces scientific publications of the highest quality, serves ornithologists at every career stage, pursues a global perspective, and informs public policy on all issues important to ornithology and ornithological collections. The Society's Checklists serve as the accepted authority for scientific nomenclature and English names of birds in North, Middle, and South America. The society is also a partner in the online publication of The Birds of North America with the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. Journal metrics Citation metrics Clarivate 2025 Cited Half-Life 3.7 years 2025 Immediacy Index 0.8 2025 Eigenfactor Score 0.00092 2025 Article Influence Score 0.634 Scopus 2025 CiteScore 4.1 Animal Science And Zoology (Rank by CiteScore) 95/520 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior And Systematics (Rank by CiteScore) 184/736 2025 Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP) 0.828 Readership 2025 Full Text Usage 294,745 Peer Review and Production 2025 Median days from submission to first decision 40 days 2025 Median days from submission to final decision 53 days About metrics Disclaimer Statements of fact and opinion in the articles in Ornithology are those of the respective authors and contributors and not of the Journal, American Ornithological Society, or Oxford University Press, unless otherwise expressly indicated. Neither Oxford University Press, American Ornithological Society, nor the Journal make any representation, express or implied, in respect of the accuracy of the material in the Journal and c
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Ornithology
Editor-in-chief Christina RiehlPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Avian ecology and behaviorEnvironmental Science24.3%
- Plant and animal studiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences8.3%
- Wildlife Ecology and ConservationEnvironmental Science7.2%
- Species Distribution and Climate ChangeEnvironmental Science5.9%
- Animal Behavior and ReproductionAgricultural and Biological Sciences5.5%
- Botany, Ecology, and Taxonomy StudiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.8%
- Rangeland and Wildlife ManagementEnvironmental Science4.4%
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics StudiesEnvironmental Science3.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Biology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Ornithology | Zone 1 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Biology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Ornithology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Biology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Ornithology | Zone 1 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
ScopusLetPub
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
- 2.62LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.1LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 4.1Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.56LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.83LetPub ·
- h-index
- 86LetPub ·
- h-index
- 172OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 4,980OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0OpenAlex ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 14%LetPub ·
Volume
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 294,745Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 25,590 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 10 | 6 | 55 |
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
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
53 dayssubmission to final decision · community reports about 3 months
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 3 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 95%LetPub ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 40 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to final decision 2025
- 53 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | USD 125 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Page charges
- USD 125
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 prepare9 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 300 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 1
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Templates
- Word
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
- Highlights
- Required
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted11
- book reviewAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- commentaryAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- in memoriamIn MemoriamLength not stated
- insightInsightLength not stated
- literature reviewAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- monographMonographLength not stated
- original articleAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- perspectiveAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- research articleAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- reviewAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
- standard articleAOS journals publish 8 article types plus Corrections. Contact the journal at AOSpubs@americanornithology.org regarding a Correction. Article Type Page Limit1 A…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteConflicts of interest, Data availability, Open access, Peer review, Plagiarism, Preprints, Self-archiving
- Conflicts of interest Disclosure
Any financial interests or connections, direct or indirect, or other situations that might raise the question of bias in the work reported or the conclusions, implications, or opinions stated—including pertinent commercial or other sources of funding for the individual author(s) or for the associated department(s) or organization(s), personal relationships, or direct academic competition—should be…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Availability Statement
The inclusion of a Data Availability Statement is a mandatory requirement for articles published in both journals. Data Availability Statements provide a standardized format for readers to understand the availability of data underlying the research results described in the article. The statement may refer to original data generated in the course of the study or to third-party data analyzed in the …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access
Ornithology and Ornithological Applications offer the option of publishing under either a standard licence or an open access licence. Please note that some funders require open access publication as a condition of funding. If you are unsure whether you are required to publish open access, please do clarify any such requirements with your funder or institution. Should you wish to publish your artic…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Double-Anonymized Peer Review
Double-anonymized peer review Model summary
AOS journals have a double-anonymized peer review process, i.e., authors do not know the identity of reviewers; reviewers do not know the identity of authors. Reviewers may sign reviews if they choose. For the purposes of anonymized review, authors must remove identifying information (e.g., author names, institutional information) from the main manuscript. However, this information is included on …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Plagiarism Plagiarism
Manuscripts submitted to Ornithology and Ornithological Applications may be screened with iThenticate anti-plagiarism software in an attempt to detect and prevent plagiarism. Any manuscript may be screened, especially if there is reason to suppose part or all of the text has been previously published. Prior to final acceptance any manuscript that has not already been screened may be put through iT…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprint policy
Authors retain the right to make an Author’s Original Version (preprint) available through various channels, and this does not prevent submission to the journal. For further information see our Online Licensing, Copyright and Permissions policies. If accepted, the authors are required to update the status of any preprint, including your published paper’s DOI, as described on our Author Self-Archiv…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Self-archiving Embargo
If you want to coordinate a press release with the publication of your article, notify the Managing Editor (AOSpubs@AmericanOrnithology.org) as soon as possible after acceptance so can hold your article from automated publication and coordinate an embargo date.
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
- Ornithological Societies of North America
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Quarterly
- Founded
- 1884
- ISSN
- 0004-8038
- Electronic ISSN
- 2732-4613
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 143, Issue 3 (July 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about AUK
What CAS zone is AUK in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, AUK is in Zone 3 of Biology, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Ornithology. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Biology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of AUK?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.62; CiteScore 4.1, h-index 172.
How long does peer review take at AUK?
The publisher reports about 53 days (submission to final decision); authors report an average review time of about 3 months; the community-reported acceptance is “about 95%”. 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 AUK?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 300 words; Keywords: ≥ 1; Reference style: Author–date; Templates: Word; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Suggested reviewers: Optional; Highlights: Required; Graphical abstract: Optional; Cover letter: Required. 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.
Which databases index AUK?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, AUK is indexed in Scopus.
Is AUK open access, and what is the APC?
AUK is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 125.
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 2026-08-24). Last updated: .