How I review
What it means when an article says “Reviewed by Calvin Beale, PhD”, and the standards behind it.
What the byline means
I have read the final text of the article, checked its factual claims and references against the scientific literature and authoritative databases, and know of no errors in it.
It does not mean I wrote the article, or that I endorse the company’s trips or products. If an article is changed after I review it, I check the new version before my name stays on it.
What I check
- References
- Every citation is opened and compared with the actual publication: author list, title, journal, year, volume, issue and pages. A reference that cannot be found is removed or replaced with one that supports the claim.
- Claims against their sources
- It is not enough for a source to exist. I check that it says what the article says it does, for the same species, place and time period.
- Numbers and their scope
- Figures are checked for what they actually cover: which species group, which region, which years. A real number applied to the wrong thing is one of the commonest errors in this field.
- Names
- Scientific names are checked against current taxonomy, using the World Register of Marine Species and FishBase.
- Conservation status and law
- IUCN Red List categories are checked against the current assessment, CITES listings against the current appendices, and national protections against the regulation that sets them.
- Wildlife encounters
- Any description of getting close to animals should tell readers how to behave around them. Where that guidance is missing, I supply it.
- Currency
- I check whether anything important has happened since the article was drafted, such as a new assessment, a change in the law, or a major bleaching event.
Sources I rely on
Peer-reviewed literature first. Alongside it: the IUCN Red List, CITES, the World Register of Marine Species, FishBase, NOAA Coral Reef Watch, and the published regulations of the country concerned.
When I can’t verify something
I say so. If a claim depends on something only the company knows, such as onboard practice or a dive site’s conditions, I flag it and ask the company to confirm before publication. I don’t guess.
Found an error?
If you think a reviewed article gets something wrong, please email review@calvinbeale.co.uk. I will check it against the evidence and make sure it is corrected if it needs to be.