The Board of Natural Sciences played a significant role in bringing together institutions involved in promoting natural sciences in the city of Barcelona. The publications endorsed by the Board are an excellent testimony to the importance acquired by this body and the avant-garde vision it displayed with regard to the relationship between developed societies and respect for natural resources, fundamentally in the 1920s. Included in this section are publications from the Board from between 1910 and 1937, earlier publications from Barcelona City Council (1888-1899) and other contemporary publications from the Barcelona Natural Science Museum (1922-1928) iand also later publications: those of the Municipal Institute for Natural Sciences (1947-1957), an institution that continued with the Board’s functions following the Civil War. All of this scientific production is very varied in terms of content (geology, palaeontology, mineralogy, petrology, entomology, botany, malacology, vertebrates, herpetology, etc.) and it also contains reports and both technical and popular science publications.
Miscel·lània Zoològica: ISSN 0211-6529, e-ISSN 2339-7330
Treballs del Museu de Zoologia: ISSN 0211-0687, e-ISSN 2385-4340
The first issue of Miscel·lània Zoològica appeared in 1958. At that time the journal was published by the Zoology Museum of Barcelona, which explains the specialty subject matter and title of this publication that was issued annually up until the year 2000. Only one interruption, during a period of change between 1982 and 1983, altered the rhythm of dissemination of zoological data, which was resumed in 1984 with a new periodical called Treballs del Museu de Zoologia de Barcelona. This second series was monographic, with no clear-cut publishing schedule. The last of the seven volumes issued was published in 1995.
The void left by Miscel·lània Zoològica was filled by a new publication — Animal Biodiversity and Conservation— which was destined from its outset in 2001 to be a vehicle for disseminating quality scientific research in zoology and conservation biology. Following in the tradition of Miscel·lània Zoològica t it, too, comprised input that was largely faunistic in nature, which finally became channelled into another publication, created in 2004 and in exclusively electronic format, Arxius de Miscel·lània Zoològica. The renewal of the publishing role represented by Miscel·lània Zoològica is thus reflected in the appearance of these two new series.
At the same time, the publishing line of in-depth studies, Treballs del Museu de Zoologia was also modernised and in 2003 was renamed Monografies del Museu de Ciències Naturals.