First proposed in 2003, the DNA barcoding initiative has generated more than 1000 scientific publications, but none so far in the de facto top science journals, Nature and Science. The barcode library contains over 1 million records from over 100 thousand species, suggesting opportunities for new insights into large-scale patterns and processes in biodiversity. Yet so far relatively few papers have attempted synthetic exploration of this unprecedented genetic resource beyond species identification. To encourage high-profile discovery, Program for the Human Environment is offering $5000 prizes for the first DNA barcoding papers in Nature and Science, as announced earlier this month at the close of Fourth International Barcode of Life Conference, University of Adelaide, Australia. To qualify, the paper must embrace DNA barcoding either in the title or abstract, and cite CBOL and iBOL in the acknowledgments.