Citing Sources in text
1. Don’t Footnote: cite by author and year of publication
Ex: A variety of organic molecules are commonly used to maintain or adjust the osmotic
concentration of intracellular fluids (Hochachaka and Somero 1984, Schmidt-Nielsen 1990).
a. Where appropriate, you may incorporate the authors name directly into the sentence:
Ex: Kim (1976) demonstrated that magnetic fields established by direct current can alter the
rates of enzyme-mediated reactions in cell-free systems.
OR
Ex: The ability of magnectic fields established by direct current to alter the activity of certain
liver enzymes was first demonstrated by Kim (1976).
2. When 2 or more authors have collaborated on a single publication, the standard shortcut is
et al.
Ex: A mutation is defined as any change occurring in the nitrogenous base sequence of DNA
(Tortora et al. 1982).
3. Be concise when citing references. Avoid:
Ex: In his classic work, The Biology of Marine Animals, published in 1967, Colin Nicol reviewed
the literature on invertebrate bioluminescence.
Instead Write
Ex: The phenomenon of invertebrate bioluminescence was reviewed by Nicol (1967).
4. Avoid Citation Overkill. When discussing a series of facts from a single source or group of
sources, it is not necessary to cite the same resource in every sentence.
Ex: Hochahka and Somero (1984) discuss the physiological adaptations of diving mammals in
considerable detail. In particular, they note that diving Weddell seals exhibit a pronounced
decline in both rate of metabolism and ATP turnover rate. In one experiment, ATP turnover rates
were reduced by as much as 50% during a 20-minute dive.
5. When citing an online journal (obtained via pdf) use the same format as for a hard copy
journal.
Notice where the period goes and that there are no page numbers included!
Preparing a Literature Cited Section
1. List references in alphabetical order and then chronologically.
2. Spell out only the last names; initials are used for the first and middle names.
3. Include the names of ALL authors, even though the names of only 1-2 are cited in the text (NO
et. al. here!)
4. Titles of articles are NOT enclosed in quotation marks and only the first word in capitalized.
5. Journal names are usually abbreviated. Acceptable abbreviations can usually be found within the
article themselves.
Format (Note: There is variation in format among journals! The most important thing is to pick a format
and stick to it!)
1st author Last name, Initials. (Publication Year). Article Title. Journal Abbreviation. Volume Issue:
page## -page##.
Examples:
Jarrett, J.N. (1997). Temporal variation in substratum specificity of Semibalanus balanoides (Linnaeus)
cyprids. J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 211: 103-114.
Twonmbly, S., Burns, C.W. (1996). Effects of food quality on individual growth and development in the
freshwater copepod Boeckella triarticulata. J. Plankton Res. 18: 75-82.
Woodin, S.A., Lindsay, S.M., Wethey, D.S. (1995). Process-specific recruitment cues in marine
sedimentary systems. Biol. Bull. 189: 49-58.