Oceanographic and biogeochemical drivers cause divergent trends in the nitrogen isoscape in a changing Arctic Ocean.

ABSTRACT: Nitrogen stable isotopes (δ¹⁵N) are used to study food web and foraging dynamics due to the step-wise enrichment of tissues with increasing trophic level, but they rely on the isoscape baseline that varies markedly in the Arctic due to the interplay between Atlantic- and Pacific-origin waters. Using a hierarchy of simulations with a state-of-the-art ocean-biogeochemical model, we demonstrate that the canonical isotopic gradient of 2-3‰ between the Pacific and Atlantic sectors of the Arctic Ocean has grown to 3-4‰ and will continue to expand under a high emissions climate change scenario by the end of the twenty-first century. δ¹⁵N increases in the Pacific-influenced high Arctic due to increased primary production, while Atlantic sector decreases result from the integr

SUBMITTER: Buchanan PJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8692545 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature