The stable isotope ratios of carbon (dC) and nitrogen (dN) of the muscle, ctenidia and viscera of the Sydney rock oyster, Saccostrea glomerata, showed the dilution and assimilation of tertiary treated sewage along an estuarine gradient. The enriched N values of oyster ctenidia and viscera from within 50 m of the sewage outfall indicated the use of N-enriched tertiary treated sewage effluent (16...

[1] High-precision nitrous oxide (N2O) concentration and isotope ratio measurements have been carried out on archived air samples from the Antarctic station Neumayer covering the period 1990–2002. The results show that the increase in the N2O mixing ratio over this period is accompanied by a significant decrease in the heavy isotope content. The temporal isotope trends amount to ( 0.040 ± 0.003...

Since the anthrax attacks of 2001 the need for methods to trace the origins of microbial agents has become urgent. The stable isotope ratios of bacteria record information from both the nutrients and the water used to make their culture media and could potentially be used to provide information about their growth environment. We present a survey of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and hydrogen (H) sta...

Understanding the composition of paleodiets is crucially important for the archaeological investigation of lifeways and subsistence practices within ancient societies. Among the numerous research methods capable of investigating various elements of paleodiets, the use of stable isotope analysis has become increasingly popular. Advantages of this research technique include its ability to recogni...

This study investigated the influence of nitrogen (N) fertilizer and straw on intact amino acid N uptake by soil microorganisms and the relationship between amino acid turnover and soil properties during the wheat growing season. A wheat pot experiment was carried out with three treatments: control (CK), N fertilizer (NF) and N fertilizer plus rice straw (NS). We used stable isotope compound-sp...

The mechanisms by which even the clearest of keystone or dominant species exert community-wide effects are only partially understood in most ecosystems. This is especially true when a species or guild influences community-wide interactions via changes in the abiotic landscape. Using stable isotope analyses, we show that subterranean termites in an East African savanna strongly influence a key e...

Research on past human diets in the southern Lake Titicaca Basin has directed us to investigate the carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes of an important dietary element, fish. By completing a range of analyses on modern and archaeological fish remains, we contribute to two related issues regarding the application of stable isotope analysis of archaeological fish remains and in turn their place w...

OBJECTIVES The Rapa Nui "ecocide" narrative questions whether the prehistoric population caused an avoidable ecological disaster through rapid deforestation and over-exploitation of natural resources. The objective of this study was to characterize prehistoric human diets to shed light on human adaptability and land use in an island environment with limited resources. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ma...

Fibers are often found at crime scenes and current methods can determine the chemical composition and color of the fiber as well as physical characteristics. Unless the fiber contains DNA, there is no way to compare a fiber found at a crime scene with fibers found in a suspect’s possession. This study aims to determine if isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) can be used to add an additional l...

Dionaea is a highly specialized carnivorous plant species with a unique mechanism for insect capture. The leaf is converted into an osmotically driven trap that closes when an insect triggers sensory trichomes. This study investigates the significance of insect capture for growth of Dionaea at different successional stages after a fire, under conditions where the prey is highly variable in its ...