Search results for " Isotopes"
showing 10 items of 460 documents
The effects of anthropogenic organic matter inputs on stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in organisms from different trophic levels in a southern Me…
2005
Stable isotope ratios were used to determine the impact of anthropogenically derived organic matter from onshore and offshore fish farming and a sewage outfall on organisms at different trophic levels (primary producers and consumers) on the south-east coast of Sicily (Italy, Mediterranean). Representative macroalgae and consumers were collected in three sampling locations: "Impact" and two putative "Controls" sited to the north of the impacted location. While delta(13)C values of both organic matter sources and consumers varied little between locations, delta(15)N spatial variability was higher and delta(15)N was shown to be a good descriptor of organic enrichment and uptake of anthropogen…
C4 plant isotopic composition (delta13C) evidence for urban CO2 pollution in the city of Cotonou, Benin (West Africa).
2006
9 pages; International audience; The carbon isotopic composition (delta13C) of plants can reveal the isotopic carbon content of the atmosphere in which they develop. The delta13C values of air and plants depend on the amount of atmospheric fossil fuel CO2, which is chiefly emitted in urban areas. A new indicator of CO2 pollution is tested using the delta13C variation in a C4 grass: Eleusine indica. A range of about 4 per thousand delta units was observed at different sites in Cotonou, the largest city in the Republic of Benin. The highest delta13C values, from -12 per thousand to -14 per thousand, were found in low traffic zones; low delta13C values, from -14 per thousand to -16 per thousan…
THE EVALUATION OF STABLE ISOTOPIC RATIOS 13C AND 15N IN HUMIC ACIDS ALONG A FEN PEAT PROFILE
2019
Mires are known as consistent environmental archives, but humic acids are the fraction of peat that is most recalcitrant and refractory to organic matter degradation, thus data on environmental changes during mire development can be recorded into them. This work was focused on the studies of stable isotopic ratios delta carbon-13 and delta nitrogen-15, and their distribution in humic acids within fen peat layers of different depths and peat composition. The variations in delta carbon-13 reflect isotopic variations in peat-forming plants over time and can be considered as a function of photosynthetic pathway that is being used to fix carbon dioxide. At the same time, variations in delta nitr…
Influence of15N enrichment on the net isotopic fractionation factor during the reduction of nitrate to nitrous oxide in soil
2007
5 pages; International audience; Nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas, is mainly emitted from soils during the denitrification process. Nitrogen stable-isotope investigations can help to characterise the N(2)O source and N(2)O production mechanisms. The stable-isotope approach is increasingly used with (15)N natural abundance or relatively low (15)N enrichment levels and requires a good knowledge of the isotopic fractionation effect inherent to this biological mechanism. This paper reports the measurement of the net and instantaneous isotopic fractionation factor (alpha(s/p) (i)) during the denitrification of NO(3) (-) to N(2)O over a range of (15)N substrate enrichments (0.37 to 1.00 atom% (15)…
Insights into the effect of soil pH on N(2)O and N(2) emissions and denitrifier community size and activity.
2010
ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to investigate how changes in soil pH affect the N 2 O and N 2 emissions, denitrification activity, and size of a denitrifier community. We established a field experiment, situated in a grassland area, which consisted of three treatments which were repeatedly amended with a KOH solution (alkaline soil), an H 2 SO 4 solution (acidic soil), or water (natural pH soil) over 10 months. At the site, we determined field N 2 O and N 2 emissions using the 15 N gas flux method and collected soil samples for the measurement of potential denitrification activity and quantification of the size of the denitrifying community by quantitative PCR of the narG , napA ,…
The fate of organic matter sources in coastal environments: a comparison of three Mediterranean lagoons
2008
Trophic processes in coastal lagoons are strongly influenced by freshwater inputs and water exchanges with the sea. In recent years, stable isotope analysis has become a widespread and reliable method for the examination of trophic structure over time and space, also in complex ecosystems such as coastal lagoons. Stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen were studied in primary producers and consumers to identify organic matter source pools from terrestrial, benthic and pelagic environments and to characterise the trophic structure in three Mediterranean coastal lagoons (Lake Fusaro, the Lake of Sabaudia and Stagnone di Marsala). The results highlighted the negligible importance of terrestrial…
Exploring the mass surface near the rare-earth abundance peak via precision mass measurements at JYFLTRAP
2019
The JYFLTRAP double Penning trap at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line (IGISOL) facility has been used to measure the atomic masses of 13 neutron-rich rare-earth isotopes. Eight of the nuclides, $^{161}$Pm, $^{163}$Sm, $^{164,165}$Eu, $^{167}$Gd, and $^{165,167,168}$Tb, were measured for the first time. The systematics of the mass surface has been studied via one- and two-neutron separation energies as well as neutron pairing-gap and shell-gap energies. The proton-neutron pairing strength has also been investigated. The impact of the new mass values on the astrophysical rapid neutron capture process has been studied. The calculated abundance distribution results in a better agreement w…
Role of protozooplankton in the diet of North Sea autumn spawning herring (Clupea harengus) larvae
2022
AbstractThe role of small prey (< 200 µm) in larval marine fish nutrition is largely understudied. Here, we explore the contribution of protozooplankton (PZP 20–200 µm) to larval fish diets, compared to metazoan microzooplankton (MZP 55–200 µm). More specifically, we tested whether the contribution of PZP increased during the low productivity season and decreased as larvae grow. We used North Sea autumn spawning herring (Clupea harengus) as a case study, as it is a key species with high commercial and ecological importance. In autumn and winter, the potential PZP and MZP prey was dominated by cells < 50 µm (mainly Gymnodiniales, Pronoctiluca pelagica,Tripos spp. and Strombidium spp.),…
Unveiling community patterns and trophic niches of tropical and temperate ants using an integrative framework of field data, stable isotopes and fatt…
2018
Background: The use and partitioning of trophic resources is a central aspect of community function. On the ground of tropical forests, dozens of ant species may be found together and ecological mechanisms should act to allow such coexistence. One hypothesis states that niche specialization is higher in the tropics, compared to temperate regions. However, trophic niches of most species are virtually unknown. Several techniques might be combined to study trophic niche, such as field observations, fatty acid analysis (FAA) and stable isotope analysis (SIA). In this work, we combine these three techniques to unveil partitioning of trophic resources in a tropical and a temperate community. We d…
Strontium isotopes as tracers of water-rocks interactions, mixing processes and residence time indicator of groundwater within the granite-carbonate …
2016
This study aims at identifying the water-rock interactions and mixing rates within a complex granite-carbonate coastal aquifer under high touristic pressure. Investigations have been carried out within the coastal aquifer of Bonifacio (southern Corsica, France) mainly composed of continental granitic weathering products and marine calcarenite sediments filling a granitic depression. A multi-tracer approach combining physico-chemical parameters, major ions, selected trace elements, stable isotopes of the water molecule and 87Sr/86Sr ratios measurements is undertaken for 20 groundwater samples during the low water period in November 2014. 5 rock samples of the sedimentary deposits and surroun…