Abstract
Stable isotope analyses (δ 15N) were used to examine invertebrate tissue enrichment in two North Carolina estuaries with differing amounts of nutrient loading. Bivalves collected from a nutrient sensitive estuary yielded a significant difference in mean nitrogen isotopic composition of tissue (10.4‰ ± 0.82; N = 66) compared to bivalves collected from a less nutrient sensitive estuary (6.4‰ ± 0.63; N = 45). Similarly, blue crabs from nutrient sensitive sites had a nitrogen isotopic composition of 11.4‰ (±1.3, N = 77), which was significantly different ( P < 0.001) than the tissue of less nutrient sensitive blue crabs (9.6‰ ± 0.6; N = 77). The results showed that an inverse relationship exists between invertebrate tissue enrichment and indicators of water quality across estuarine sites. This study suggests that a relationship may exist between nutrient sources and subsequent energy transfer to estuarine consumers in two North Carolina estuaries.
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