Letter from the editors.

Dear Readers:

2002 has been an exceptionally busy year here, as we are in the process of transforming the UPDATE in several significant ways. In September we bid a fond farewell to Jennifer Jacobus, our former Publication Editor. We miss her excellent editorial skills, and we wish her the best as she finishes her dissertation. Saul Alarcon-Adams, who has been involved with online development at the UPDATE, bas succeeded Jennifer. Saul brings a wealth of experience, and has facilitated and contributed to the translation of article abstracts into French and Spanish, a feature that began with the September/October 2002 issue.

Our November/December 2002 issue introduces our new "Species at Risk" section where we will present the profile of rare and declining species, including their taxonomy, distribution, physical characteristics, natural history, conservation status, and economic importance. This section will be also offered in Spanish.

In addition, for the last year we have been working with Brian Rosenblum of the Scholarly Publishing Office at the University of Michigan to create electronic files of our entire archive. This enormous task will be complete within a few months and greatly improve the functionality of our website.

Finally, over the last few months we have been working with a scientific illustrator, Ryan Burkhalter, to redesign our cover and the inside format of the UPDATE. Our new look will debut in the January/February 2003 issue. We look forward to presenting the results of our efforts, and we welcome your feedback.

Best wishes,