Submissions

Author Guidelines

1. Types of articles:

Papers in full format: (research papers): These are original research papers that provide new data to the field of research in the marine environment. They can have up to 25 pages including figures and tables.

Review Articles: They address current scientific issues and provide reflections on the issues addressed. They can be sent directly or respond to invitations made by the Editorial Board of the magazine. They can have up to 35 pages including figures and tables.

Monographs: These are complete and integrated studies (up to 100 pages) that represent an in-depth synthesis and interpretation of the results. Given its comprehensive nature, only a reduced number (2 to 4) of monographs per year will be published. The authors will consult with the Chief Editor about the possibilities of publishing this type of contribution before sending it.

Short communications: Preliminary work with novel results. Reports of new species records are also included. Its length should not exceed 4000 words.

Book reviews: They can be requested by the Chief Editor or proposed by the authors. Authors wishing to write a review must submit a proposal to the Editor-in-Chief for approval. Reviews must be limited to 1,000 words.

2. Submission of manuscripts

Manuscripts will be sent in electronic format through the journal's website (RIM)

The submission will include a cover letter signed by the author for correspondence, where on behalf of all the authors the interest in submitting the manuscript for evaluation for publication is indicated. The letter should include a statement that all authors have given their consent to the submission and publication of the manuscript. It will also explicitly state that the results presented are original and the product of the authors' research and that they have not been simultaneously submitted for review by another journal. The RIM considers plagiarism when an author uses the work or data of another author without the author's consent. Forms of plagiarism include (but are not limited to): verbatim copying of a manuscript and paraphrasing.

The presentation letter should include a brief description of the importance and novelty of the research and indicate the number of figures and tables, supporting manuscripts and supplementary information if available. Current telephone numbers, the postal address of the corresponding author and the e-mail addresses of all authors should be included. Five to seven potential reviewers will be named and their contact information provided. Authors should not recommend recent collaborators or colleagues working at the same institution as reviewers. It is recommended that the suggested reviewers belong to different institutions and if possible from different countries. Providing false or fraudulent information about potential reviewers will result in the rejection of the manuscript.

The following statements should be included in the presentation letter itself. These will be published in the final version of the manuscript in a section entitled "Disclosures and declarations" before the "References" section (More information in Editorial Policies).

Declarations and examples:

Funding:

• This research has been partially funded by the [Name of project and program] project.

• This research has received funding from the [Name of program, grant, award, etc.] program.

If no funding has been received:

• The authors of this work have not received any funding to conduct the research.

• No funding of any kind was received to conduct this research.

Conflict of interest:

• Author [A] has received a budget from the [company, entity, ministry, program,project], author [B] receives [funding, salary, bonus, payment for services] from the [committee, panel, program, company].

• Author [A] is a member of the [name] commission.

• Author [A] is on the board of the company that requested the service.

No conflict of interest:

• The authors have no financial or non-financial conflicts of interest to declare that are relevant to the content of the manuscript.

Ethical behavior:

• The authors have followed all applicable international, national, and institutional recommendations related to the use and handling of animals for research.

If animals were not included during the research:

• No animals were used during the conduct of the present research.

Permits for sampling and other permits:

• The authors have received from the pertinent authorities the necessary permits for sampling (other activities requiring permits are added). These authorities should be mentioned in the acknowledgments (if applicable).

If the research did not require obtaining permits:

• No permits were required for the conduct of this research.

Statement of authors' contributions:

For research articles with multiple authors, a brief paragraph specifying their individual contributions should be provided, according to Contributor Role Taxonomy (CrediT) to list and define possible tasks or roles. The initials of the authors' names will be used to define each role. (More information in the Editorial Policies section).

Example of the text to be submitted:

• Author Contribution: "Conceptualization, XX and YY; Methodology, XX; Software, XX; Validation, XX, YY and ZZ; Formal Analysis, XX; Research, XX; Resources, XX; Data Curation, XX; Writing - Original" Draft Preparation, XX; Writing - Review and Editing, XX; Visualization, XX; Supervision, XX; Project Management, XX; Funding Acquisition, YY ".

Manuscripts are accepted through a submission and peer review process. To facilitate assignment of manuscripts to a Thematic Editor, authors are invited to propose the subject area in which the submitted paper should be included. A prior review of the submitted manuscripts will be conducted to identify possible cases of plagiarism, ethical problems and indications of misconduct. Manuscripts where these problems are identified may be rejected.

3. Instructions for manuscript preparation

Authors are advised to read the following instructions carefully. In the event that manuscripts do not meet the necessary requirements they will be returned without revision.

Languages

Manuscripts shall be written in Spanish or English language. In the case of English, authors are encouraged to have the manuscript reviewed by an English speaker or an English language specialist.

Manuscript format

Manuscripts should be submitted in electronic format, using A4 sheets (21 cm x 29.7 cm). The following formats are accepted: .doc, .docx, .odt and .rtf. The lines should be double-spaced, in Times New Roman 12-point font, with a 2 cm margin on all four sides, justified to the left.

Order of submission

The sequence of manuscript content is as follows: title, authors with ORCID ID and without scientific and/or academic titles, full address, author for correspondence and their e-mail, condensed title, abstract, key words, introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, conclusions (optional), acknowledgements, references, figure legends and tables. Tables, figures, appendices and supplementary material, should be sent in separated documents.

Title

It should be short (no more than 15 words) and descriptive, in Spanish and English languages. In bold, with lower case letters and without period. In case there are species names, they should be written in italics and at least two higher taxonomic categories should be placed in parentheses. It is not essential to include the authors of the species in question.

The full names of the authors are written under the title of the paper; it is advisable for those who include two surnames to join them with a hyphen, so that they are always cited in the same way. The ORCID IDs, their affiliations and the complete address (es) of the institution(s) are then included. The names of the institutions should be written in their original language. Authors' names will be published exactly as they appear in the submitted manuscript.

It is strongly recommended that authors use their ORCID identifier when submitting the manuscript, however, it is not mandatory. The link to this platform will be placed behind the authors' names once the manuscript review and editing process is completed.

Author for correspondence

This is the author with whom contact will be established for the course of the entire process. Their e-mail should appear after the institutions and their name can be marked with an asterisk.

Condensed title:

The condensed title will be printed on the cornices of the pair pages. It should not exceed 60 characters should be written in the language of the manuscript.

Abstract

The abstract is included in Spanish and English language; it should be concise and informative and contain the objective(s) of the research, the most significant results and the implications of the results. It is presented in a single paragraph and should not exceed 250 words. Articles in English should also have their abstract in Spanish.

Keywords

The author must propose a minimum of five keywords (in Spanish and English languages) that are not contained in the title. The Editor may make a selection if it is considered necessary (e.g., in case of the use of irrelevant words for search and indexing systems). These are added at the end of the abstract and will be used for the thematic cataloguing of the work. The list of keywords ends with a period.

Text:

• Headings of main sections are written in bold type and subheadings in bold italics and left justified.

• All pages and lines should be numbered continuously, using automatic numbering systems to facilitate the revision of the document.

• The first time a species is mentioned, its full scientific name should be indicated, including authorship; in the rest of the text, the initial letter of the genus should be followed by the specific name. Genus and species names are written in italics. It is mandatory to accept the approved rules of biological nomenclature, so it is essential for authors, referees and editors to consult the International Code of Nomenclature for Algae, Fungi and Plants, the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature and the International Code of Nomenclature for Bacteria.

• The metric units of the International System of Measures should be used in the singular and without a period (e.g., m, km, ml, l, g, kg and others), with a space between the number and the unit. Other equivalent units may be included in parentheses.

• Intervals, e.g., weight (1.2-1.4 kg) or height (11-15 cm), are separated by a short hyphen and no spaces.

• Numbers from zero to ten that are not followed by units are written with letters; thousands are separated by spaces, never by a comma (e.g. 4 500 kg); decimals with periods (3.2 cm, 8.3 l) and a space is also left when using % (64 %).

• Geographical coordinates should be written in simple abbreviated form, for example: 23°32'10'' N and 84°22'48''.

• Calls to figures should be written in abbreviated form (Fig.).

• Texts should be written taking special care to respect the grammatical rules and approved vocabulary for each language. Neither colloquial language nor regionalisms should be used, which could create ambiguities. They should be objective and expository, avoiding the anecdotal.

• The results of statistical tests should be presented appropriately so that they can be evaluated by the reader, e.g., (ANOVA, p = 0.03) or (correlation, r = 0.88, n = 35).

• Abbreviations are explained the first time they appear.

• References in the text: When two authors are cited their names are joined according to the language of the text, while in parentheses they are joined with &, e.g. Green and Smith (1990) or (Green & Smith, 1990). When three or more authors are cited, the first author followed by et al. is included (in italics) in the text. When there is no author in the citation, the appropriate name of the source should be included (e.g., Nuevo Atlas Nacional de Cuba, 1989). When two or more citations are included together, they are placed in chronological order as follows: Pérez et al. (1972), Scott (1982), Scott et al. (1984), López and Juárez (1985), Martínez (1985) and Suárez (1991) or (Pérez, et al., 1972; Scott, 1982; Scott, 1982; Scott et al., 1984; López and Juárez, 1985; Martínez, 1985; Suárez, 1991). Citations of more than one publication for the same author should be written in lowercase letters separated by commas when they coincide in the same year (Torres, 1970a, b). Unpublished results and personal communications should be included only in the text and should include the author's initials and surname. Avoid using an excessive number of citations to support and/or discuss a widely known approach or fact.

Conclusions

In case conclusions are considered for inclusion, they should be concise and elaborated following an unnumbered paragraph format. Alternatively, a General Considerations section may be included.

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements are intended to credit important support for the completion of the work, including sources of funding if necessary. Personal names should be written without including scientific degree or other title.

References

Bibliographic references will be written in alphabetical and chronological order, with French indentation; if it is a single author who also has more than one reference for the same year following the date, lower case letter (2001a, b); if there are two authors, it is organized alphabetically by the first and then by the second; in the case of more than two authors, it is organized by the first and then chronologically; also, when there is more than one reference by more than two authors in the same year, all authors are listed and lowercase letters are placed after the year of publication. In the references of each article all the authors appear and in all cases first the surnames and then the initial letters separated from the surname by a comma (no space between the initials), without joining the last author; the year in parentheses and then the title of the publication. Avoid citing unpublished papers and contributions to events that have not been refereed. The names of journals should be abbreviated according to the World List of Scientific Periodicals and cited in italics as required; if it does not appear in this list, then the full name of the journal should be given in italics as well. The volume is indicated in italics, the number in parentheses and the pages after the number preceded by a comma. Published works, which have not yet been paginated, must include the DOI number.

Book references should include the city, country and publisher where it was published. Neither the number of pages nor the ISSBN is required.

Some examples:

Journal articles

• Roman, J. (2018). The ecology and conservation of Cuba’s coastal and marine ecosystems. Bull Mar Sci. 94(2), 149-169.

• Barrios-Valdés, O. (2016). Observaciones ecológicas de Cerion santacruzense (Gastropoda: Cerionidae) en tres cayos del Parque Nacional Jardines de la Reina, Cuba. Poeyana, 502, 32-38.

• Denny, C.M., Babcock, R.C. (2004). Do partial marine reserves protect reef fish assemblages? Biol. Conserv., 116, 119-129. doi: 10.1016/S0006-3207(03)00183-6

• Aguilar-Perera, A., González-Salas, C. (2010). Distribution of the genus Hypoplectrus (Teleostei: Serranidae) in the Greater Caribbean Region: support for a color-based speciation. Marine Ecology, 31, 375–387.

• Arriaga-Ochoa, J.A., Solís-Marín, F., Laguarda-Figueras, A., Solís-Weiss, V. (2012). First record of Lissothuriaantillensis (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea) from the Gulf of Mexico. Rev. Mex. de Biodiv., 83, 291-293.

• Azanza-Ricardo, J., Ibarra-Martín, M. E., González-Sansón, G., Abreu Grobois, F. A., Eckert, K. L., Espinosa-López, G., Oyama, K. (2013). Nesting ecology of Chelonia mydas (Testudines: Cheloniidae) on the Guanahacabibes Peninsula, Cuba. Rev. Biol. Trop. 61 (4), 1935-1945.

• Azanza-Ricardo, J., Gerhartz-Muro, J. L., Forneiro Martín-Viaña, Y., Moncada-Gavilán, F. (2015). Efectividad del monitoreo de la anidación de tortugas marinas para determinar el éxito reproductivo en playas del sur de Cuba. Lat. Am. J. Aquat. Res., 43(3), 548-556.

• Azanza-Ricardo, J., Gerhartz-Muro, J.L., Forneiro Martín-Viaña, Y., Moncada-Gavilán, F., Bretos, F., Medina Cruz, Y., Nodarse Andreu, G., Pérez-Martín, R., García-Alfonso, E. (2018). Achievements and challenges of marine turtle conservation in Cuba. Bull. Mar. Sci., 94(2), 297-312.

Books

• Baisre, J.A. (2004). La pesca marítima en Cuba. Cuba, Editorial Científico-Técnica.

• Humann, P., Deloach, N. (2002).Reef Creature identification Florida Caribbean Bahamas. 2da ed. Jacksonville, Florida: New World Publications.

• Deloach, P. F., Doughety, W. J.,Davidson, M. A. (eds.) (1991). FrontiersofShrimpResearch. Elsevier,Amsterdam.

• Capítulos de Libros

• Salabarría Fernández, D., Pérez Montero, O., Beatón, P.A., Suárez, A.M. y Castellanos González, M.E.(2015). Antecedentes del MIZC en Cuba. Marco teórico y conceptual. En P. González-Díaz (Coord.) Manejo Integrado de Zonas en Cuba. Estado actual, retos y desafíos (pp. 9-28), La Habana, Ed. Imagen Contemporánea.

Thesis

• Martínez-Daranas, B. (2007). Características y estado de conservación de los pastos marinos en áreas de interés del Archipiélago Sabana-Camagüey, Cuba. Tesis presentada en opción al Grado Científico de Doctor en Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de la Habana, Cuba.

• Navarro-Martínez, Z. (2015). Ictiofauna arrecifal de Punta Francés, Cuba: Estructura y estado de conservación en el periodo 2011-2014. Tesis presentada en opción al grado académico de Máster en Biología Marina y Acuicultura, Centro de Investigaciones Marinas, Universidad de La Habana, Cuba.

Memories of events

• Pina Amargós, F., González Sansón, G., Cabrera Páez, Y., Cardoso Gómez, P.E. (2008). Effects of fishing activity reduction in Jardines de la Reina Marine Reserve, Cuba. Proceedings of the 61st Annual Meeting of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 61.

Internet citations

• Pagel, M., Meade, A. (2006). BayesTraits Version 1.0 Revised February 10, 2010 Distributed over the Internet, http://www.evolution.rdg.ac.uk/BayesTraits.html, Reading, UK.

• Guiry, M.D., Guiry, G.M. (2018). AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication. National University of Ireland, Galway. http://www.algaebase.org; searched on 30 April 2018.

• CIGEA (Centro de Información Gestión y Educación Ambiental) (1999). Percepciones Medioambientales en la Sociedad Cubana Actual, Un Estudio Exploratorio. http://www. cu-ba.cu/cigea/percepción.htm, consultado en línea el 22 de julio de 2014.

Legend of figures and tables

Include on one page the legend of all figures, each numbered; they should be explicit and allow their interpretation independently of the text.

Figures

Figures should be submitted independently as vector graphic files in eps format or as an image in TIFF format. These can be oriented either vertically or horizontally. The files should be identified with the corresponding figure number (e.g., Fig. 1.tif). They should be designed as compact as possible and should not exceed the following dimensions: 210 mm x 280 mm. The resolution should be at least 150 dpi. In the case of using texts, Times New Roman font should be used, with a minimum of 9 pts. Photos (color or black and white) must be saved in TIFF or JPG format and 150 dpi resolution. They should be sharp, not distorted, and no manipulations that alter or eliminate information present in the original image should be made (Consult editorial policies). In the case of figures of organisms whose measurements are referred to in the text, the scales must appear (e.g. histological sections, species descriptions). It is recommended to elaborate the figures taking into account color-blind people. For this purpose, an appropriate color palette should be used and the contrast of the image should be improved. Whenever possible, monochromatic images should be created where different geometric figures, line types or positions are used to represent the data. The quality of the photographs and graphics included in the article are the absolute responsibility of the authors and those that do not fulfill the aforementioned standards will be returned to the authors for improvement.

Tables

Tables should be presented in a separate file from the main text and follow the same text formatting guidelines. They should have no vertical lines and only three horizontal lines, two in the first row and one below the last row. Only the font size will be modified, which will be 10. The table header and footnotes are included with the table in their respective positions. The table heading should include all the information necessary for its interpretation independently of the text, including the abbreviations used in the table.

Chemical or mathematical formulas

They should be included with Math Symbols typography or in the case of scanning should be of sufficient quality to be legible in the text, i.e. give them the same treatment as black and white photos.

Annexes:

They will be sent in a separate file and must follow the rules of presentation indicated above.

Complementary Material:

Supplementary Material is accepted and although it is not indispensable for the understanding of the article, it is cited within the article; they are not part of the final pdf and are not edited, so authors are requested to prepare it in its final version. This material cannot be modified after the manuscript has been accepted. Supplementary material is received in the form of data, figures or tables and the format is according to the authors' criteria, in Word, PDF, EXCEL: RIM accepts up to 6 Mb of supplementary material per article. In the case of photos, the Editor-in-Chief will decide the number of Mb that can be used. It must have its title, the name of the authors, their affiliation, the e-mail of the author for correspondence and the name of the journal in which it is included. All supplementary material will be hosted on the RIM site within the Zenodo repository. 

4. Academic disciplines and sub-disciplines

e. g., Marine Sciences, Biological Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Food Sciences, Conservation Sciences

5. Keywords

e. g., aquaculture and mariculture, marine biodiversity, biogeography, conservation, ecology, phylogeography, population genetics, hydrography, environmental impact, integrated management, meteorology, microbiology, oceanography, fisheries resources and taxonomy

6. Coverage

p. ej., marine and coastal environments, Cuban archipelago, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, tropical seas