A meta-collection of nitrogen stable isotope data measured in Arctic marine organisms from the Canadian Beaufort Sea, 1983–2013

Abstract

Objectives Existing information on Arctic marine food web structure is fragmented. Integrating data across research programs is an important strategy for building a baseline understanding of food web structure and function in many Arctic regions. Naturally-occurring stable isotope ratios of nitrogen (δ15N) and carbon (δ13C) measured directly in the tissues of organisms are a commonly-employed method for estimating food web structure. The objective of the current dataset was to synthesize disparate δ15N, and secondarily δ13C, data in the Canadian Beaufort continental shelf region relevant to trophic and ecological studies at the local and pan-Arctic scales. Data description The dataset presented here contains nitrogen and carbon stable isotope ratios (δ15N, δ13C) measured in marine organisms from the Canadian Beaufort continental shelf region between 1983 and 2013, gathered from 27 published and unpublished sources with associated sampling metadata. A total of 1077 entries were collected, summarizing 8859 individual organisms/samples representing 333 taxa across the Arctic food web, from top marine mammal predators to primary producers.

Investigating the dynamics of methylmercury bioaccumulation in the Beaufort Sea shelf food web: a modeling perspective

“…A range of tools can be applied to provide insight into the dietary composition of top predators, such as fatty acid signatures and stable isotope ratios. 33,103,104 However, it is often difficult to assess the apportionment of the food or contaminant uptake across regions for highly migratory species foraging a wide range of prey at various geographic locations. Here we illustrate a method of estimating the MeHg contribution between two foraging grounds for Beaufort beluga using a combination of empirical data from field studies and ecosystem modeling that simulates bounding case MeHg concentrations ( i.e.…”

“…A range of tools can be applied to provide insight into the dietary composition of top predators, such as fatty acid signatures and stable isotope ratios. 33,103,104 However, it is oen difficult to assess the apportionment of the food or contaminant uptake across regions for highly migratory species foraging a wide range of prey at various geographic locations.…”