Stable isotopes in ecosystem studies

Central topics are - plant physiology studies - food webs and animal metabolism - biogeochemical fluxes. These therefore represent ideal tracers for field and ecophysiological studies thereby avoiding reductionist experimentation and encouraging more holistic approaches.

Studying Animal Niches Using Bulk Stable Isotope Ratios An Updated Synthesis Springerlink from link.springer.com

8 July 1999 Accepted.

Stable isotopes in ecosystem studies. STABLE ISOTOPES IN ECOSYSTEM STUDIES Bruce J. Peterson and Brian Fry The Ecosystems Center Marine Biological Laboratory Woods Hole Massachusetts 02543 INTRODUCTION The use of stable isotopes to solve biogeochemical problems in ecosystem analysis is increasing rapidly because stable isotope data can contribute both. The use of stable isotopes to solve biogeochemical problems in ecosystem analysis is increasing rapidly because stable isotope data can contribute both source-sink tracer and process information.

The elements C N S H and all have more than one isotope and isotopic compositions of natural materials can be measured with great precision with a mass spectrometer. Stable isotopes in ecosystem studies Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics Vol. The ecological applications of stable isotopes have so far been mostly confined to physiological and ecosystem level studies.

Participants in the symposium discussed novel applications of stable isotope techniques to understand community processes such as plantplant interactions Ramírez et al. Indeed the use of stable isotopes to understand plant interactions which. Stable isotopes are often utilized as intrinsic tracers to study the effects of human land uses on the structural and functional characteristics of ecosystems.

Here we illustrate how stable isotopes of H C and O have been utilized to document changes in ecosystem structure and function using a case study from a subtropical savanna ecosystem. Stable isotope geochemistry represents a powerful tool for better understanding biogeochemical cycles species distributions contaminant cycling food webs and ecosystem structure. Using stable isotopes TSH scientists are able to capitalize on two essential attributes.

Stable isotope-based methods have proved to be immensely valuable for ecological studies ranging in focus from animal movements to species interactions and community structure. Stable isotopes are a powerful research tool in environmental sciences and their use in ecosystem research is increasing. In this review we introduce and discuss the relevant details underlying the use of carbon and oxygen isotopic compositions in ecosystem gas exchange research.

Stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen are increasingly used in marine ecosystems for ecological and environmental studies. Here we examine some applications of stable isotopes as ecological integrators or tracers in seagrass ecosystem studies. For this purpose stable isotopes analysis has become a particularly suitable tool offering time- and space-integrated information on the environmental effects on tree physiology and the implications for carbon water and nutrient ecosystem balances.

The analysis of stable isotope ratios represents one of the most exciting new technical advances in environmental sciences. In this book leading experts offer the first survey of applications of stable isotope analysis to ecological research. Central topics are - plant physiology studies - food webs and animal metabolism - biogeochemical fluxes.

Stable isotopes pose no environmental threat and do not change the chemistry or biology of the target organism or system. These therefore represent ideal tracers for field and ecophysiological studies thereby avoiding reductionist experimentation and encouraging more holistic approaches. The addition of stable isotopes SI of ¹³C and ¹⁵N has been used to study several aquatic processes thus avoiding environmental disturbance by the observer.

This approach employed for. In isotope hydrology stable isotopes of water 2 H and 18 O are used to estimate the source age and flow paths of water flowing through ecosystems. The main effects that change the stable isotope composition of water are evaporation and condensation.

Variability in water isotopes is used to study sources of water to streams and rivers evaporation rates groundwater. First building on studies conducted in modern ecosystems this paper outlines key aspects of the stable isotope ecology of freshwater environments highlighting the importance of considering physical and biological processes associated with ancient biogeochemical cycles. The use of stable isotopes to study ecosystem gas exchange Received.

8 July 1999 Accepted. 10 January 2000 Abstract Stable isotopes are a powerful research tool in environmental sciences and their use in ecosystem re-search is increasing. In this review we introduce and dis-cuss the relevant details underlying the use of carbon and.

Stable Isotope Studies in Marine Chemoautotrophically Based Ecosystems. An Update - Stable Isotopes in Ecology and Environmental Science - Wiley Online Library. Stable Isotopes in Ecology and Environmental Science Second Edition.