Journal profile · Marine & Freshwater Biology
Biological Bulletin
ISSN 0006-3185 · eISSN 1939-8697 · University of Chicago Press · UNITED STATES · Bimonthly · Founded 1899
Biological Bulletin: CAS Zone 3 · Biology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.96; hybrid open access; review 6–12 weeks (community reports); community-reported acceptance: easy; 21 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Biological Bulletin is published by University of Chicago Press 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 Marine Biology and Ecology Research, Cephalopods and Marine Biology and Marine and coastal plant biology, together about 22.8% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The Biological Bulletin disseminates novel scientific results in broadly related fields of biology in keeping with more than 100 years of a tradition of excellence. The Bulletin publishes outstanding original research with an overarching goal of explaining how organisms develop, function, and evolve in their natural environments. To that end, the journal publishes papers in the fields of Neurobiology and Behavior, Physiology and Biomechanics, Ecology and Evolution, Development and Reproduction, Cell Biology, Symbiosis and Systematics. The Bulletin emphasizes basic research on marine model systems but includes articles of an interdisciplinary nature when appropriate.
Source: LetPub
Research area (LetPub): Marine & Freshwater Biology
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Marine Biology and Ecology ResearchEarth and Planetary Sciences8%
- Cephalopods and Marine BiologyAgricultural and Biological Sciences7.8%
- Marine and coastal plant biologyEarth and Planetary Sciences7%
- Crustacean biology and ecologyEnvironmental Science6.7%
- Neurobiology and Insect Physiology ResearchNeuroscience6.5%
- Marine Biology and Environmental ChemistryEngineering5.6%
- Physiological and biochemical adaptationsEnvironmental Science5.5%
- Marine and fisheries researchEnvironmental Science5.1%
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 | Biology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Biology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Biology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Biology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Marine & Freshwater Biology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Biology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
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
- 0.96LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.4LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.59LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.86LetPub ·
- h-index
- 70LetPub ·
- h-index
- 162OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 5,963OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.46OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 7.02%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 3LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 9,031 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 21 | 0 | 4 |
| 2024 | 31 | 11 | 22 |
| 2023 | 48 | 7 | 106 |
| 2022 | 61 | 18 | 600 |
| 2021 | 60 | 12 | 702 |
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
- Average review time (community reports)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
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.
No source has fee information yet; check the journal's website.
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.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- University of Chicago Press
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1899
- ISSN
- 0006-3185
- Electronic ISSN
- 1939-8697
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Biological Bulletin
What CAS zone is Biological Bulletin in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Biological Bulletin is in Zone 3 of Biology, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Biology / Marine & Freshwater Biology. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Biology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Biological Bulletin?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 0.96; CiteScore 4.4, h-index 162.
How long does peer review take at Biological Bulletin?
Authors report an average review time of 6–12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”. 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 Biological Bulletin?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Biological Bulletin is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Biological Bulletin open access, and what is the APC?
Biological Bulletin is a hybrid journal. Fee information is not available yet; check the journal's website.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, 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: .