Stable C and N isotope values in Kemp's ridley sea turtle scutes in the northern Gulf of Mexico, 2010 to 2012

Publication Date

2017-04-18

Start Date

2011-01-01

End Date

2012-12-31

National Park Service, 2016, Data tables in support of manuscript "δ13C and δ15N in the endangered Kemp's ridley sea turtle lepidochelys kempii after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill": U.S. Geological Survey data release, http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F70C4SXJ.

Type: Related Primary Publication

Stable isotopes of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) incorporated in the scutes of sea turtles (inert tissue with continuous growth) provide a history of foraging and habitat use when serial samples of the scute are analyzed (Reich et al. 2007). The oldest dietary record is retained in the outermost layer of scute and each successive layer (0.05 mm) reveals more recent diet and habitat use (Reich et al. 2007, 2008; Vander Zanden et al. 2010). Therefore, if the turtles were exposed to oil after the spill, it may be detected in the recent layers of scute using stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen. Here, we address three questions: 1) were nesting females of 2010 exposed to the oil in their foraging grounds? 2) Is the signature of the oil still present in the foraging area in subsequent years after the spill? 3) What is the proportion of females that were affected by the oil spill? To answer these questions, we analyzed scute samples of female turtles from three consecutive years, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

• Columbia Environmental Research Center (CERC)

Data source

Input directly