[Taxacom] time spent reviewing descriptions

[Andy Deans]

This question might be indirectly relevant to the current discussion  
on folding wiki-like functionality into the description process, but I  
am mainly asking for my own curiosity about the path a specimen or  
group of specimens takes to go from 'undescribed' to <some species  
name>.

So how long does one typically spend reviewing a paper that revises a  
genus and describes 10 new species? I'm sure the answer is "it  
depends." But I am interested in hearing about your average commitment  
(or range of time committed) in this area. E.g., is this step  
inhibiting the broad discovery of biodiversity? From my own experience  
the review process can take from one week to three months, and then it  
takes another 4-52 weeks for those species be become valid through  
publication. But what if we could streamline this process  
somehow...any thoughts?

All the best,
Andy

Andrew R. Deans
Department of Entomology
North Carolina State University
Campus Box 7613
2301 Gardner Hall
Raleigh, NC USA 27695-7613

phone: +1 (919) 515-2833
fax: +1 (919) 515-7746
skype: ardeans
http://www4.ncsu.edu/~ardeans/