Testing the Reproducibility of Carbon and Nitrogen Isotopic Records in Bamboo Coral from Southeastern United States

Abstract

In this research project, deep-sea bamboo coral collected off the southeastern coast of the United States (SE USA) underwent isotopic ratio analysis to test for reproducibility. We found that reproducibility is possible for carbon and nitrogen isotopic records in bamboo coral. Bulk carbon and nitrogen values were similar to isotopic values found in bamboo coral from previous studies. Radiocarbon dating, however, is necessary in order to determine the growth rate of the specimen and its age. This would also reduce the amount of variability seen amongst the δ13C and δ15N values for internodes tested. Coupling a timeline and the observed trends will then allow us to make conclusions about the conditions near the Jacksonville Lithoterms using bamboo coral. The reproducibility information gathered in this study can potentially be used as validation for using isotopic records as a proxy for oceanographic environmental variability at a high resolution over time.