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Temporal and spatial variability in stable isotope compositions of a freshwater mussel: implications for biomonitoring and ecological studies

  • Community Ecology
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Abstract

Stable isotopes can be used to elucidate ecological relationships in community and trophic studies. Findings are calibrated against baselines, e.g. from a producer or primary consumer, assumed to act as a reference to the isotopic context created by spatio-temporal attributes such as geography, climate, nutrient, and energy sources. The ability of an organism to accurately represent a community base depends on how, and over what time-scale, it assimilates ambient materials. Freshwater mussels have served as references for trophic studies of freshwater communities and as indicators of change in nutrient pollution load or source. Their suitability as reference animals has not yet been fully explored, however. We conducted a series of studies examining the suitability of freshwater mussels as isotopic baselines, using their ability to reflect variation in ambient nutrient loads as a case scenario. (1) We analyzed bivalve foot tissue δ15N and δ13C from 22 stream reaches in the Piedmont region of North Carolina, USA to show that compositions varied substantially among locations. Site mean bivalve δ13C values correlated with site ambient particulate organic matter (POM) δ13C values, and site mean bivalve δ15N values correlated with site ambient water dissolved δ15N-NO3 values. (2) Similarity of results among sample types demonstrated that the minimally invasive hemolymph sample is a suitable substitute for foot tissue in δ15N analyses, and that small sample sizes generate means representative of a larger population. Both findings can help minimize the impact of sampling on imperiled freshwater mussel populations. (3) In a bivalve transplantation study we showed that hemolymph δ15N compositions responded to a shift in ambient dissolved δ15N-NO3, although slowly. The tissue turnover time for bivalve hemolymph was 113 days. We conclude that bivalves serve best as biomonitors of chronic, rather than acute, fluctuations in stream nutrient loads, and provide initial evidence of their suitability as time-integrated isotopic baselines for community studies.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the Stable-Isotope Laboratory at North Carolina State University for providing funds and facilities necessary to conduct our study. We thank Bernie Genna and Shannon Curtis for conducting laboratory isotope analyses and LeRoy Humphries and Heather Boyette for their help in sample collection and preparation. We also thank Judy Johnson-Ratcliff and John Alderman, formerly with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, and Tim Savidge, formerly with the North Carolina Department of Transportation, for their advice and support in the proper collection and handling of the animals used in this study. The North Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit is jointly supported by North Carolina State University, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, the US Geological Survey, and Wildlife Management Institute. All these research activities comply with current laws and regulations of the United States of America.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Medicine Consortium, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA

    Lori Gustafson, William Showers, Thomas Kwak, Jay Levine & Michael Stoskopf

  2. Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA

    Lori Gustafson & Jay Levine

  3. Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA

    Lori Gustafson & Michael Stoskopf

  4. Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, North Carolina State University, Jordan Hall, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA

    William Showers

  5. US Geological Survey, North Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, North Carolina State University, Box 7617, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA

    Thomas Kwak

  6. US Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Centers for Epidemiology and Animal Health, National Surveillance Unit, 2150 Centre Ave, Mail Stop 2E6, Fort Collins, CO, 80526-8117, USA

    Lori Gustafson

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  1. Lori Gustafson
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Correspondence to Lori Gustafson.

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Communicated by David Post.

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Gustafson, L., Showers, W., Kwak, T. et al. Temporal and spatial variability in stable isotope compositions of a freshwater mussel: implications for biomonitoring and ecological studies. Oecologia 152, 140–150 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-006-0633-7

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