IMAS Metadata Catalogue
Antarctic fur seal stable isotopes
A stable isotope analysis on blood and whiskers samples from adult female Antarctic fur seals, from 3 colonies in the Southern Ocean:
- Marion Island (2008-2018)
- Bird Island, South Georgia (2008-2012)
- Cape Shirreff, South Shetland Islands (2008-2012)
The purpose of the study is to examine temporal, spatial and individual variation in the trophic ecology of Antarctic fur seal, and their role as sentinels of change in the Southern Ocean ecosystem.
EMBARGO NOTE: Data is embargoed until 01/01/2027. The data files associated with this record will be made available at this time.
Simple
Identification info
- Date (Publication)
- 2026-03-17T00:00:00
Identifier
- Title
- Information and documentation - Digital object identifier system
- Citation identifier
- ISO 26324:2012
- Code
- 10.25959/64A7-FW78
- Codespace
- doi.org
- Description
- Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Principal investigator
Principal investigator
Collaborator
- Status
- Completed
Principal investigator
Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies - Lea, Mary-Anne
University of Tasmania
Tasmania
Australia
Point of contact
Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies - Walters, Andrea
University of Tasmania
Tasmania
Australia
Point of contact
Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies - Friscourt, Noémie
University of Tasmania
Tasmania
Australia
- Topic category
-
- Biota
Extent
N
S
E
W
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S
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W
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Temporal extent
- Time period
- 2008-01-01 2012-12-31
- Maintenance and update frequency
- Irregular
- Keywords (Theme)
-
- stable isotopes
- whiskers
- blood
- Keywords (Taxon)
-
- Antarctic fur seal
- Arctocephalus gazella
- Global Change Master Directory Earth Science Keywords, Version 8.5
Resource constraints
- Use limitation
- Data, products and services from IMAS are provided "as is" without any warranty as to fitness for a particular purpose.
Resource constraints
- Other constraints
- This dataset is the intellectual property of the University of Tasmania (UTAS) through the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS).
Resource constraints
- Linkage
-
https://licensebuttons.net/l/by-nc/4.0/88x31.png
License Graphic
- Title
- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
- Alternate title
- CC-BY-NC
- Edition
- 4.0
- Website
-
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
License Text
- Other constraints
- Friscourt, N., Lea, M.-A., & Walters, A. (2026). Antarctic fur seal stable isotopes [Data set]. Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies. https://doi.org/10.25959/64A7-FW78
- Language
- English
- Character encoding
- UTF8
- Supplemental Information
- Friscourt, N., M. A. Lea, Y. Cherel, S. Wotherspoon, E. A. Brewer, W. C. Oosthuizen, P. J. N. de Bruyn, M. Wege, M. E. Goebel, P. N. Trathan, and A. Walters. 2024. Seasonal and ocean basin-scale assessment of amino acid δ15N trends in a Southern Ocean marine predator. Marine Ecology Progress Series 747:151-169. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14699 Walters, A., M. Hindell, M. E. Goebel, M. N. Bester, P. N. Trathan, W. C. Oosthuizen, and M.-A. Lea. 2020. Southern Ocean isoscapes derived from a wide-ranging circumpolar marine predator, the Antarctic fur seal. Ecological Indicators 118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2020.106694
Content Information
- Content type
- Physical measurement
Identifier
- Code
- Nitrogen stable isotope
- Name
- Carbon stable isotope
- Name
- Per mill
Identifier
- Code
- Carbon stable isotope
- Name
- Per mille
Distribution Information
- Distribution format
-
- CSV
- OnLine resource
-
Associated publication
Friscourt, N., M. A. Lea, Y. Cherel, S. Wotherspoon, E. A. Brewer, W. C. Oosthuizen, P. J. N. de Bruyn, M. Wege, M. E. Goebel, P. N. Trathan, and A. Walters. 2024. Seasonal and ocean basin-scale assessment of amino acid δ15N trends in a Southern Ocean marine predator. Marine Ecology Progress Series 747:151-169. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14699
- OnLine resource
-
Associated publication
Walters, A., M. Hindell, M. E. Goebel, M. N. Bester, P. N. Trathan, W. C. Oosthuizen, and M.-A. Lea. 2020. Southern Ocean isoscapes derived from a wide-ranging circumpolar marine predator, the Antarctic fur seal. Ecological Indicators 118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2020.106694
Resource lineage
- Statement
- Samples: whole blood and whiskers of adult female Antarctic fur seals (AFS) Stable isotope analysis: bulk on whiskers and whole blood; compound specific amino acid only on whole blood 1. Sample collection Samples were collected from female AFSs breeding at 3 circumpolar sites in the Southern Ocean: (1) Marion Island (46° 52’ S, 37° 51’ E), in the Indian sector, (2) Bird Island (54° 00’ S, 38° 02’ W), off the northwest tip of South Georgia in the southwest Atlantic sector and (3) Cape Shirreff (62° 28’ S, 60° 48’ W), on the north coast of Livingston Island, in the South Shetland Islands, near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula on the edge of the Pacific sector. Whole blood samples (1–5 ml) were collected from a hind flipper interdigital vein from adult female AFSs. Blood was sampled as soon as possible after females arrived at the breeding colony and when possible again at the end of the breeding season. Whole blood provides an indication of the consumer trophic ecology over the past 2–3 months. Samples collected at the start of the breeding season thus represent the last few months of the inter-breeding period, while samples collected at the end of the breeding season reflect foraging during the summer breeding period. One of the longest vibrissae, typically most distal to the nose, was cut as close to the face as possible, and the regrowth was cut again when females returned the following summer. 2. Laboratory analysis 2.1. Whole blood bulk and CSIA-AA Samples were stored at –20°C until isotopic analysis. Blood samples were dried at 60°C for at least 24 h prior to bulk and compound-specific stable isotope analyses (Walters et al. 2020 Friscourt et al. 2024). Dried blood samples were analysed for bulk δ13C and δ15N values (δ13Cbulk and δ15Nbulk) by combusting them in a Carlo-Erba EA1100 (CE Instruments) and passing the separated gases produced to an Isoprime (Elementar) continuous-flow isotope ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS). All samples were processed at the Farquhar Laboratory, Australian National University (ANU), Canberra. Replicate measurements of internal laboratory standards for δ15N (glycine, cysteine) and δ13C (glycine, cane sugar and beet sugar) indicated internal precisions better than 0.15‰, for both. Internal standards were previously calibrated against interlaboratory comparison standards distributed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the USGS (L-glutamic acid, USGS 40 and USGS 41), except for ANU cane sugar, which was also the source of IAEA CH-6. Stable isotope ratios were reported using standard δ notation in parts per thousand (‰) deviation from the international standards Vienna PeeDee belemnite for δ13C and atmospheric nitrogen for δ15N as follows: δX = [(Rsample/Rstandard) – 1] × 1000 (1) where X is 13C or 15N, and R is the corresponding ratio of 13C/12C or 15N/14N. Dried blood samples were analysed for individual amino acid δ15N values (δ15NAA) using a modified method described by Meekan et al. (2022) at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) laboratories in Hobart, Australia (see supplementary material of Friscourt et al. 2024 for more information). The modification was the temperature and duration of the initial hydrolysis; we used 20 h at 110°C. The δ15N compositions of the individual amino acids were measured with a Trace GC Ultra gas chromatograph coupled to a Delta V Plus IRMS through a GC-C combustion furnace (980°C), reduction furnace (650°C) and liquid N2 cold trap. Each sample was analysed at least in duplicate. To normalize the δ15N values, a set of amino acid standards with known δ15N values was used to bracket the 2 distinct IRMS analyses. The slope and intercept of known vs. measured values were then used to correct the measured values for the sample set. The reproducibility of the isotopic analysis of individual amino acids calculated from the bracketing standards was ±0.48‰ (1 SD) and ranged from ±0.10 to ±0.71‰. 2.2 Whiskers bulk Whiskers were cleaned with 3 successive rinses in a 2:1 chloroform:methanol solution, and then oven-dried at 60°C for 72 h. Whiskers were measured, weighed and sectioned into approximately 3 mm sections (0.5-1.5 mg weight) following Walters et al. (2020). Samples were analysed for stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes by combusting them in a Carlo-Erba EA1100 (CE Instruments, Milan, Italy) and passing the separated gases produced to an Isoprime (Elementar, Cheadle SK8 6PT England) continuous-flow isotope-ratio mass spectrometer. All samples were processed at the Farquhar Laboratory, Australian National University (ANU), Canberra. Isotope values were reported using standard δ notation in parts per thousand (‰) deviation from the international standards (Vienna PeeDee Belemnite for carbon, and atmospheric nitrogen for nitrogen) as follows: δX = [(Rsample/Rstandard) – 1] × 1000, where X is 13C or 15N, and R is the corresponding ratio of 13C/12C or 15N/14N. As a control for the quality of keratin, we measured the carbon-to-nitrogen ratios (C:N) of each sample. Most of C:N ratios values are indicating good data quality (Newsome et al. 2010). Samples with a C:N ratio > 3.5 need to be excluded from further analysis. 3. Note on the animal identification. Individual seals are identified using numbered flipper tags. Because seals may be captured and re-tagged multiple times throughout the study period, a single individual can be associated with more than one tag number over time. To account for this, the SIA file includes a seal_tag column indicating the tag number at the time of sample collection, and an other_tag column listing any alternative tag numbers used for the same individual in earlier or later years.
- Hierarchy level
- Dataset
- Hierarchy level
- Dataset
Metadata
- Metadata identifier
- urn:uuid/977fa8d5-da00-4240-8767-e05e532c6bd0
- Language
- English
- Character encoding
- UTF8
Type of resource
- Resource scope
- Dataset
- Name
- IMAS Dataset level record
- Metadata linkage
-
https://metadata.imas.utas.edu.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/catalog.search#/metadata/977fa8d5-da00-4240-8767-e05e532c6bd0
Point of truth URL of this metadata record
- Date info (Creation)
- 2025-09-19T00:00:00
- Date info (Revision)
- 2026-03-17T17:48:22
Metadata standard
- Title
- ISO 19115-3:2018
Overviews
Spatial extent
N
S
E
W
N
S
E
W
N
S
E
W
Provided by
Associated resources
Not available