Carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition of different strains ofArtemia sp

Abstract

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios have been determined on 41 strains ofArtemia sp. from different geographic regions around the world. The δ13C and δ15N values ranged between −13.7 to−25.0 per mil and −0.7 to 21.2 per mil respectively.Artemia δ13C values from coastal environments are consistent with a marine origin for the food sourceArtemia from inland salt lakes have a range of carbon isotope values suggesting C3, C4 and CAM based organic matter could form the base of theArtemia food chain. These data indicate thatArtemia having a wide range of carbon and nitrogen isotope values are available for tropho-dynamic research studies that quantify the effect of respired CO2 on tissue and CaCO3 shell13C/12C ratios. Such stable isotope variation also suggests that stable isotope fingerprinting remains a viable technique for identifying specificArtemia collection sites.