Editorial standards
Evidence Before Certainty
Our policy is designed to keep identification guidance useful, sourceable and honest about missing evidence.
Scope and responsibility
Freshwater Lens publishes educational material about freshwater species, habitat, photography and mobile observation. The publisher is responsible for accuracy, corrections, disclosure and the final decision to publish.
Source hierarchy
Taxonomy, range and habitat begin with public agencies, museum or university collections, peer-reviewed work and established species databases. A secondary summary may help orientation, but a material claim should trace to a named source whenever one is available.
Identification language
We distinguish confirmed, probable and unresolved identifications. We do not upgrade confidence because software produces a confident-looking label. Where closely related species need a hidden or unphotographed character, the article says so.
Conservation status and law
A global category is labelled global, dated and linked. Local legal status, population condition and harvest rules are separate questions. Readers are directed to the authority responsible for their water.
Bylines and expertise
No individual is presented as an author, editor, biologist or field tester without a verified identity and accurate role. This prepublication build uses the institutional byline Freshwater Lens Editorial Desk until real contributor information is supplied.
Independence and disclosure
Editorial conclusions must not be sold. Sponsored or commercially supported material must be labelled at the top of the page and explain the relationship. Affiliate relationships must be disclosed before a relevant link.
Images and editing
Documentary species images must have a traceable creator, source and usage status. Cropping and global exposure or color corrections may be used for presentation; edits that add or remove diagnostic anatomy are not acceptable as evidence.
Updates and corrections
Pages show a publication date and the date of the latest editorial review. Material corrections are documented through the procedure on Sources & Corrections.
Policy version 1.0 · Effective August 30, 2026