Journal profile · PLANT SCIENCES
Journal of Systematics and Evolution
ISSN 1674-4918 · eISSN 1759-6831 · Wiley-Blackwell · PEOPLES R CHINA · Founded 2008
Journal of Systematics and Evolution: CAS Zone 2 · Biology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.15; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,000; median 106 days to acceptance (83 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 101 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Systematics and Evolution is published by Wiley-Blackwell and is in Zone 2 of Biology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Plant and Fungal Species Descriptions, Plant Diversity and Evolution and Plant and animal studies, together about 42.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics and Plant Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Journal of Systematics and Evolution (JSE) is a peer-reviewed, bi-monthly international English-language journal that publishes research related to systematics and evolution of plants, animals, fungi, and microbes. We publish articles, reviews, short communications, and letters to the editor dedicated to the description and understanding of biological diversity across kingdoms. Abstracting and Indexing Information Abstracts on Hygiene & Communicable Diseases (CABI) Academic Search Alumni Edition (EBSCO Publishing) AgBiotech News & Information (CABI) AgBiotechNet (CABI) Agricultural & Environmental Science Database (ProQuest) Agroforestry Abstracts (CABI) Animal Breeding Abstracts (CABI) Animal Production Database (CABI) Animal Science Database (CABI) Aquaculture Compendium (CABI) Biocontrol News & Information (CABI) Biofuels Abstracts (CABI) Biological Abstracts (Clarivate Analytics) Biological Science Database (ProQuest) BIOSIS Previews (Clarivate Analytics) Botanical Pesticides (CABI) CAB Abstracts® (CABI) Crop Physiology Abstracts (CABI) Crop Protection Compendium (CABI) Crop Science Database (CABI) Current Contents: Agriculture, Biology & Environmental Sciences (Clarivate Analytics) Environmental Impact (CABI) Environmental Science Database (CABI) Field Crop Abstracts (CABI) Forest Products Abstracts (CABI) Forest Science Database (CABI) Forestry Abstracts (CABI) Global Health (CABI) Grasslands & Forage Abstracts (CABI) Helminthological Abstracts (CABI) Horticultural Science Abstracts (CABI) Horticultural Science Database (CABI) InfoTree (CABI) Invasive Species Compendium (CABI) Irrigation & Drainage Abstracts (CABI) Natural Science Collection (ProQuest) Nutrition Abstracts & Reviews Series B: Livestock Feeds & Feeding (CABI) Organic Research Database (CABI) Ornamental Horticulture (CABI) Parasitology Database (CABI) Plant Breeding Abstracts (CABI) Plant Genetic Resources Abstracts (CABI) Plant Genetics and Breeding Database (CABI) Plant Protection Database (CABI) Postharvest News & Information (CABI) Poultry Abstracts (CABI) Protozoological Abstracts (CABI) Review of Agricultural Entomology (CABI) Review of Aromatic & Medicinal Plants (CABI) Review of Medical & Veterinary Entomology (CABI) Review of Plant Pathology (CABI) Rice Abstracts (CABI) Science Citation Index Expanded (Clarivate Analytics) SciTech Premium Collection (ProQuest) SCOPUS (Elsevier) Seed Abstracts (CABI) Soil Science Database (CABI) Soils & Fertilizers Abstracts (CABI) Soybean Abstr
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): PLANT SCIENCES
Editor-in-chief Hongzhi KongPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Plant and Fungal Species DescriptionsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology16.9%
- Plant Diversity and EvolutionAgricultural and Biological Sciences15.7%
- Plant and animal studiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences10.2%
- Plant Taxonomy and PhylogeneticsAgricultural and Biological Sciences5.5%
- Plant Pathogens and Fungal DiseasesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.4%
- Genetic diversity and population structureBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.4%
- Plant Parasitism and ResistanceAgricultural and Biological Sciences3.9%
- Genomics and Phylogenetic StudiesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Biology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Plant Sciences | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Biology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Plant Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Biology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Plant Sciences | Zone 2 |
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, ProQuest
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
- 3.15LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 3.2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 7.7LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 7.7Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.04LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.66LetPub ·
- h-index
- 36LetPub ·
- h-index
- 79OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 945OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 9.4%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 22.02%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 83LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 3,462 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 84 | 27 | 37 |
| 2025 | 101 | 46 | 285 |
| 2024 | 81 | 43 | 475 |
| 2023 | 75 | 45 | 484 |
| 2022 | 97 | 37 | 1,532 |
| 2021 | 77 | 31 | 1,464 |
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
106 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 73 days – 154 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 56 days (88 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 168 days
- Sample
- 83 articles with submission and acceptance dates (196 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)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 28%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,000 / EUR 2,500 / GBP 2,000 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | JPY 500 | — | — |
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 accepted5, with length limits
- commentarysearch in systematics and biodiversity. Commentaries generally run up to 6 printed pages (around 3000–5000 words), include 1–2 figures or tables, and do not req…main text ≤ 5,000 words · figures and tables ≤ 2
- letterof scientific or public interest. These letters are brief (fewer than 3500 words, with 1–2 figures or tables.) and follow a streamlined formmain text ≤ 3,500 words
- letters to the editorLetters to the Editor offer critical discussions of important research findings in evolutionary biology, bringing fresh insights to contentious topics. These pi…main text ≤ 3,500 words · figures and tables ≤ 2
- perspectivePerspectives present the author’s personal insights on cutting-edge topics, controversial issues, or future directions. These articles should offer a forward-lo…main text ≤ 5,000 words
- reviewReviews provide a balanced synthesis of recent developments in systematics and evolutionary biology or of emerging areas of study. They should provide historica…main text ≤ 7,000 words
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Data availability, Open access, Preprints
- Authorship Authorship and Acknowledgements.
definition of authorship set up by The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data sharing
This journal mandates data sharing and peer reviews shared data.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Understanding open access
Journal of Systematics and Evolution offers an open access publishing option, making content freely available to read, download and share immediately upon publication.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprint policy
This journal accepts submissions previously published on preprint servers.
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
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Country or region
- PEOPLES R CHINA
- Language
- English
- Founded
- 2008
- ISSN
- 1674-4918
- Electronic ISSN
- 1759-6831
- Society / sponsor
- Botanical Society of China
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 64, Issue 4 (July 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Systematics and Evolution
What CAS zone is Journal of Systematics and Evolution in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Systematics and Evolution is in Zone 2 of Biology, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Plant Sciences. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Biology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Journal of Systematics and Evolution?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.15; CiteScore 7.7, h-index 79.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Systematics and Evolution?
Based on the dates recorded on 83 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 106 days (interquartile range 73–154 days); authors report an average review time of 6–12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 28%. 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 Journal of Systematics and Evolution?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Systematics and Evolution 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 Journal of Systematics and Evolution open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Systematics and Evolution is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,000.
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: .