The influence of diet on the distribution of nitrogen isotopes in animals was investigated by analyzing animals grown in the laboratory on diets of constant nitrogen isotopic composition. 
The isotopic composition of the nitrogen in an animal reflects the nitrogen isotopic composition of its diet. The δ^(15)N values of the whole bodies of animals are usually more positive than those of their diets. Different individuals of a species raised on the same diet can have significantly different δ^(15)N values. The variability of the relationship between the δ^(15)N values of animals and their diets is greater for different species raised on the same diet than for the same species raised on different diets. Different tissues of mice are also enriched in ^(15)N relative to the diet, with the difference between the δ^(15)N values of a tissue and the diet depending on both the kind of tissue and the diet involved. The δ^(15)N values of collagen and chitin, biochemical components that are often preserved in fossil animal remains, are also related to the δ^(15)N value of the diet. 
The dependence of the δ^(15)N values of whole animals and their tissues and biochemical components on the δ^(15)N value of diet indicates that the isotopic composition of animal nitrogen can be used to obtain information about an animal's diet if its potential food sources had different δ^(15)N values. The nitrogen isotopic method of dietary analysis probably can be used to estimate the relative use of legumes vs non-legumes or of aquatic vs terrestrial organisms as food sources for extant and fossil animals. However, the method probably will not be applicable in those modern ecosystems in which the use of chemical fertilizers has influenced the distribution of nitrogen isotopes in food sources. 
The isotopic method of dietary analysis was used to reconstruct changes in the diet of the human population that occupied the Tehuacan Valley of Mexico over a 7000 yr span. Variations in the δ^(15)C and δ^(15)N values of bone collagen suggest that C_4 and/or CAM plants (presumably mostly corn) and legumes (presumably mostly beans) were introduced into the diet much earlier than suggested by conventional archaeological analysis.

Influence of Diet On the Distribtion of Nitrogen Isotopes in Animals

Supplementary data related to this article can be found at: http://
dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2014.03.017

/pdf/influence-of-the-invasive-asian-clam-corbicula-fluminea-5wme4s9tmq.pdf

Influence of the invasive Asian clam Corbicula fluminea (Bivalvia: Corbiculidae) on estuarine epibenthic assemblages

river basins of IJzer, Scheldt, and Meuse (ca. 13 500 km 2 ), 2613 eels were sampled covering a dense monitoring network of 357 stations. Eels were analysed for ca. 100 chemicals. These included PCBs, organochlorine pesticides, heavy metals, brominated flame retardants, volatile organic pollutants (VOCs), endocrine disruptors, dioxins, perfluorooctane sulphonic acids (PFOSs), metallothioneins, and polycyclic aromatic compounds. This series represents only a very small fraction (,0.5%) of the .30 000 chemicals currently marketed and used in Europe. The biomonitoring value of eels as a tool for monitoring environmental contamination is illustrated. Two major conclusions were drawn: (i) the eel is a highly suitable biomonitor for environmental contaminants, for both local and international purposes, e.g. to evaluate the chemical status for the Water Framework Directive, and (ii) dependent on the degree of pollution in their habitat, the levels of certain contaminants reported in yellow eels can be high, and might affect their potential for reproduction.

/pdf/eels-contaminant-cocktails-pinpointing-environmental-4gkw7s11au.pdf

Eels: contaminant cocktails pinpointing environmental contamination

Abstract Despite the economic and ecological status of the European eel Anguilla anguilla throughout the North African coasts, this species remains little known. This study aims to provide information on the trophic habits of the fraction of the population that occupies Tonga Lake, a wetland located in Algeria extreme East. During one year (January - December 2009), a total of 477 eels (26 

Composition and variations diet of the European eel Anguilla anguilla (Linnaeus, 1758) in Tonga Lake, North-East Algeria.

Institutions: Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Dept. Biology and Ecology of Fishes, Berlin, Germany 2 European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Institute for the Protection and Security of the Citizen (IPSC), AGRIFISH Unit, Ispra (VA), Italy Danish Institute for Fisheries Research, Dept. of Inland Fisheries, Silkeborg, Denmark Radboud University Nijmegen, Institute for Wetland and Water Research, Department of Animal Ecology and Ecophysiology, Nijmegen, The Netherlands

The Diet of Large Eels (Anguilla anguilla) in Relation to Food Availability

The diet of large eels (Anguilla anguilla) in relation to food availability [CM 2006/J28]

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The Diet of Large Eels (Anguilla anguilla) in Relation to Food Availability

The diet of large eels (Anguilla anguilla) in relation to food availability [CM 2006/J28]