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| Titel |
Stable isotopes as ecological tracers: an efficient method for assessing the contribution of multiple sources to mixtures |
| VerfasserIn |
M. N. Bugalho, P. Barcia, M. C. Caldeira, J. O. Cerdeira |
| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| ISSN |
1726-4170
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| Digitales Dokument |
URL |
| Erschienen |
In: Biogeosciences ; 5, no. 5 ; Nr. 5, no. 5 (2008-09-25), S.1351-1359 |
| Datensatznummer |
250002831
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| Publikation (Nr.) |
 copernicus.org/bg-5-1351-2008.pdf |
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| Zusammenfassung |
| Stable isotopes are increasingly being used as tracers of ecological processes potentially providing relevant information to environmental
management issues. An application of the methodology consists in relating
the stable isotopic composition of a sample mixture to that of sources. The
number of stable isotopes, however, is usually lower than that of potential
sources existing in an ecosystem, which creates mathematical difficulties in
correctly tracing sources. We discuss a linear programming model which
efficiently derives information on the contribution of sources to mixtures
for any number of stable isotopes and any number of sources by addressing
multiple sources simultaneously. The model identifies which sources are
present in all, present in a subset of the samples or absent from all
samples simultaneously and calculates minimum and maximum values of each
source in the mixtures. We illustrate the model using a data set consisting
of the isotopic signatures of different plant sources ingested by primary
consumers in tropical riverine habitat in Asia. The model discussed may
contribute to extend the scope of stable isotopes methodology to a range of
new problems dealing with multiple sources and multiple tracers. For
instance, in food web studies, if particular organic matter sources
disappear or decrease in availability (e.g. climate change scenarios) the
model allows simulation of alternative diets of the consumers providing
potentially relevant information for managers and decision makers. |
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