Nitrogen isotopic ratios in fecal pellets produced by marine zooplankton

Journal Article · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1990 · Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/0016-7037(90)90203-W· OSTI ID:6692323

Altabet, M A ^[1]; Small, L F ^[2]

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1. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, MA (USA)
2. Oregon State Univ., Corvallis (USA)

At each site and in every season studied, zooplankton in the upper ocean produced fecal pellets that were 1.3% lower in {delta}{sup 15}N than their body tissue but 2.2% higher than their apparent food source. {sup 14}N-containing molecules are evidently preferentially assimilated in zooplankton intestinal tracts, though other isotopic effects must account for the enrichment in {sup 15}N of these organisms relative to their food. These results also show zooplankton to be important modifiers of nitrogen isotopic ratios for marine particulate matter. {delta}{sup 15}N values for sinking particles and fecal pellets are similar, supporting the perspective that macrozooplankton are important factors in producing and processing particles that sink into the ocean's interior and sediments. In contrast, the relationship in {delta}{sup 15}N between fecal pellets and suspended particles in the euphotic zone is more variable. It appears that zooplankton select food particles of varying {delta}{sup 15}N from the suspended particle pool. These results suggest that both zooplankton feeding behavior and their digestive chemistry are important in determining the composition of sinking particulate matter in the ocean with respect to the suspended particle source in the euphotic zone.

• OSTI ID: 6692323
• Journal Information: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta; (USA), Journal Name: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta; (USA) Vol. 54:1; ISSN GCACA; ISSN 0016-7037
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
580000* -- Geosciences
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
ATLANTIC OCEAN
BIOLOGICAL ACCUMULATION
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOLOGICAL WASTES
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
CHEMISTRY
FECES
FOOD
GEOCHEMISTRY
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INTERFACES
ISOTOPE APPLICATIONS
ISOTOPE RATIO
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
MATERIALS
NITROGEN 14
NITROGEN 15
NITROGEN CYCLE
NITROGEN ISOTOPES
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ODD-ODD NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PACIFIC OCEAN
PLANKTON
SEAS
SEAWATER
SEDIMENT-WATER INTERFACES
SEDIMENTS
STABLE ISOTOPES
SURFACE WATERS
TRACER TECHNIQUES
WASTES
WATER
WATER CHEMISTRY
ZOOPLANKTON