Lipid correction model of carbon stable isotopes for a cosmopolitan predator, spiny dogfish Squalus acanthias

Three lipid correction models were evaluated for liver and white dorsal muscle from Squalus acanthias. For muscle, all three models performed well, based on the Akaike Information Criterion value corrected for small sample sizes (AIC(c) ), and predicted similar lipid corrections to δ(13) C that were up to 2.8 ‰ higher than those predicted using previously published models based on multispecies data. For liver, which possessed higher bulk C:N values compared to that of white muscle, all three models performed poorly and lipid-corrected δ(13) C values were best approximated by simply adding 5.74 ‰ to bulk δ(13) C values.     

Dietary ontogeny and niche shift to piscivory in lacustrine brown trout Salmo trutta revealed by stomach content and stable isotope analyses

The feeding ecology and ontogeny of a large size range of brown trout Salmo trutta in Lake Fyresvatnet, southern Norway, were examined by stomach content and stable isotope analyses. According to the stomach contents, the S. trutta changed their diet at c. 30 cm total length (L_T). The smaller size classes fed on benthic invertebrates and surface insects, whereas larger S. trutta (>30 cm) fed mainly on whitefish Coregonus lavaretus. A similar, but more gradual shift to piscivory in the size range 25–30 cm was found when using the stable isotope mixing model SIAR to reveal dietary ontogeny. The δ¹³C isotopic signature confirmed that S. trutta independent of size predominantly relied upon benthic energy sources, suggesting that the littoral zone was the primary foraging habitat for both invertebrate and piscivorous feeders. The δ¹⁵N values and trophic position increased with predator length, ranging from an average of 3·60 for small‐sized S. trutta (<15 cm) to 4·15 for large‐sized fish (>35 cm). The S. trutta exhibited a relatively slow growth rate during the predominant invertebrate feeding stages up to 7 years of age and 28 cm L_T, whereas fish above this size and age displayed a rapid growth rate of 9–11 cm year^?1, demonstrating the profitability of piscivorous feeding.     

Use of carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in termite research

In this paper, I review carbon and nitrogen isotopic (natural abundance levels) studies of termites. The carbon isotope ratio of CH₄ emitted from termites, together with the emission rates of CO₂, CH₄ and H₂, showed several trends corresponding to the kinds of symbiotic microbes and feeding habits. The fraction of methane oxidized in the nest structure was estimated by comparing carbon isotope ratio of CH₄ emitted from the nest with that produced by termites in the nest. Symbiotic nitrogen fixation in the gut of termites has been shown to have a significant contribution to the nitrogen economy in some wood-feeding termites. The carbon isotope ratio distinguishes between C4 from C3 plants, and the fractional contribution of grass in the diet can thereby be estimated. The carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in termites are discernible among soil-feeders, fungus cultivators and wood-feeders. Wood/soil-interface feeders have intermediate values between wood- and soil-feeders, and thus carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios are assumed to characterize the degree of humification of the material consumed by termites. It is suggested that carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios are useful indicators of the functional position of termites in the decomposition process. A similar isotope pattern has been obtained in earthworms, suggesting that isotope signatures might be useful parameters in investigating detritivorous animals in general.     

TDFCAM: A method for estimating stable isotope trophic discrimination in wild populations

1. Stable isotope mixing models (SIMMs) are widely used for characterizing wild animal diets. Such models rely upon using accurate trophic discrimination factors (TDFs) to account for the digestion, incorporation, and assimilation of food. Existing methods to calculate TDFs rely on controlled feeding trials that are time-consuming, often impractical for the study taxon, and may not reflect natural variability of TDFs present in wild populations.
2. We present TDF_CAM as an alternative approach to estimating TDFs in wild populations, by using high-precision diet estimates from a secondary methodological source—in this case nest cameras—in lieu of controlled feeding trials, and provide a framework for how and when it should be applied.
3. In this study, we evaluate the TDF_CAM approach in three datasets gathered on wild raptor nestlings (gyrfalcons Falco rusticolus; peregrine falcons Falco perigrinus; common buzzards Buteo buteo) comprising contemporaneous δ¹³C & δ¹⁵N stable isotope data and high-quality nest camera dietary data. We formulate Bayesian SIMMs (BSIMMs) incorporating TDFs from TDF_CAM and analyze their agreement with nest camera data, comparing model performance with those based on other relevant TDFs. Additionally, we perform sensitivity analyses to characterize TDF_CAM variability, and identify ecological and physiological factors contributing to that variability in wild populations.
4. Across species and tissue types, BSIMMs incorporating a TDF_CAM outperformed any other TDF tested, producing reliable population-level estimates of diet composition. We demonstrate that applying this approach even with a relatively low sample size (n < 10 individuals) produced more accurate estimates of trophic discrimination than a controlled feeding study conducted on the same species. Between-individual variability in TDF_CAM estimates for ∆¹³C & ∆¹⁵ N increased with analytical imprecision in the source dietary data (nest cameras) but was also explained by natural variables in the study population (e.g., nestling nutritional/growth status and dietary composition).
5. TDF_CAM is an effective method of estimating trophic discrimination in wild animal populations. Here, we use nest cameras as source dietary data, but this approach is applicable to any high-accuracy method of measuring diet, so long as diet can be monitored over an interval contemporaneous with a tissue's isotopic turnover rate.

     

基于碳氮稳定同位素的南海中西部海域春季中上层渔业生物群落营养结构

根据2018年春季于南海中西部海域进行的灯光罩网渔业生物调查,本研究采用碳氮稳定同位素技术,分析了南海中西部海域中上层渔业生物的碳氮稳定同位素基本特征,构建了连续营养谱,划分了营养功能群,并比较了不同营养功能群间的营养结构特征。结果表明: 采集的23种渔业生物δ¹³C均值最大为鲯鳅,(-17.58±0.21)‰,最小为六带线纹鱼,(-19.86±0.33)‰;δ¹⁵N均值的变化范围为8.31‰(琉璃玉鲳)～(12.46±0.74)‰(宝刀鱼)。连续营养谱分析表明,采集的中上层渔业生物营养级介于3.01～4.23,其中19种渔业生物(占总渔获种类的83%)的营养级位于3.0～4.0。23种渔业生物可划分成浮游生物食性、游泳生物食性和混合生物食性3个营养功能群。稳定同位素标准椭圆面积(SEA)分析显示,浮游生物食性功能群占据的营养生态位宽幅最大(SEA=1.56‰²),其次为混合生物食性功能群(SEA=0.99‰²)和游泳生物食性功能群(SEA=0.31‰²)。混合生物食性功能群分别与游泳生物食性功能群和浮游生物食性功能群存在17%和26%的营养生态位重叠度,而游泳生物食性功能群与浮游生物食性功能群不存在生态位重叠。     

Within-lake variability in carbon and nitrogen stable isotope signatures

1. We assessed spatial and temporal variation in carbon and nitrogen isotopic signatures in different compartments of a single lake ecosystem. Stable isotope analyses were made on samples of particulate organic matter (POM), zooplankton, periphyton, macrophytes, macroinvertebrates and fish collected from several locations throughout the ice‐free period. 2. No spatial variation in δ¹³C or δ¹⁵N values was found for pelagic samples of POM and zooplankton. However, pelagic δ¹⁵N signatures increased steadily through the summer resulting in an almost 6‰ average increase in POM and zooplankton. A concurrent decrease in epilimnetic nitrate concentrations suggested that the increase in δ¹⁵N of POM and zooplankton could have resulted from a progressive ¹⁵N‐enrichment of the available inorganic nitrogen pool as the size of this pool was reduced. 3. Significant spatial variation in isotopic ratios was observed within littoral and profundal communities. Some spatial differences were likely related to lake‐specific characteristics, such as a major inlet and a small harbour area and some were interconnected with temporal events. 4. Marked differences between spring and autumn δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C values of fish at one site probably reflected a spring spawning immigration from a larger downstream lake and also indicated limited dispersal of these immigrants. 5. Our results indicate that restricted sampling of ecosystem components from lakes may provide misleading single values for the isotope end members needed for quantitative uses of stable isotopes in mixing models and for estimating trophic position. Hence we strongly advise that studies of individual lakes, or multiple lake comparisons, that utilise stable isotope analyses should pay more attention to potential within lake spatial and temporal variability of isotope ratios.     

稳定同位素分析在鸟类食性及营养级结构中的应用

稳定同位素分析(stable isotope analysis,SIA)自20世纪70年代末引入鸟类生态学领域以来,在研究鸟类食性和营养级结构方面展现了强大的发展潜力和广泛的应用前景。总结了该技术在鸟类食源组成和营养级结构方面研究的前期准备、实验流程、数据分析和研究进展等,重点阐述了其在鸟类保护与管理方面的应用。鉴于稳定同位素在生物体内存在分馏现象,从鸟类不同组织和部位对营养级富集因子、转化周期、同位素印记的差异,提出了完善该方法的建议和应用前景。     

基于碳、氮稳定同位素研究胶州湾普氏栉虾虎鱼的摄食习性

普氏栉虾虎鱼属于小型暖温性底层鱼类,是胶州湾鱼类群落中的优势种之一,在胶州湾食物网和生态系统中发挥着重要作用.本文应用碳、氮稳定同位素技术,基于胶州湾渔业资源底拖网调查采集的样品,对普氏栉虾虎鱼的摄食习性进行了研究.结果表明: 胶州湾普氏栉虾虎鱼的δ¹⁵N值范围为11.24‰～13.99‰,平均值为(12.70±0.70)‰,δ¹³C值范围为-20.67‰～-18.46‰,平均值为(-19.08±0.36)‰;各体长组的营养级范围为3.49～3.76,平均营养级为(3.62±0.21),其δ¹⁵N值和营养级与体长呈显著负相关,δ¹³C值与体长无显著相关性.普氏栉虾虎鱼摄食的主要饵料生物类群为多毛类、虾类和软体动物,浮游动物和颗粒有机物(POM)的饵料贡献率较小.聚类分析结果表明,普氏栉虾虎鱼各体长组食物组成的相似性均在92%以上,相似性较高,说明其摄食习性随体长变化无明显差异.普氏栉虾虎鱼在胶州湾生态系统中属于中级消费者,其摄食各饵料生物类群比例的变化可能是其营养级与体长呈负相关关系的主要原因.     

应用稳定同位素技术构建胶州湾食物网的连续营养谱

根据2011年春季和秋季在胶州湾进行的渔业资源综合调查,应用稳定同位素示踪技术,分析了胶州湾主要渔业生物的碳、氮稳定同位素比值(δ13C,δ15N),并计算其营养级,进而构建胶州湾食物网的连续营养谱。分析的生物种类包括浮游植物、浮游动物、大型无脊椎动物和鱼类,其生物量之和占总渔获量的95%。结果表明,胶州湾食物网的δ13C值范围是-25.63‰—-17.16‰,跨度为8.47‰,平均值为(-19.42±1.80)‰;δ15N值范围是4.15‰—14.11‰,跨度为9.96‰,平均值为(11.98±1.77)‰。胶州湾食物网中的主要生物种类可以划分为4个营养组群,即初级生产者、初级消费者、次级消费者以及顶级捕食者。δ15N值分析显示,胶州湾主要生物种类的营养级范围是1.10—4.03。与文献中基于胃含物分析计算的营养级相比较,37个种类中有29种的营养级分析结果基本一致(在0.5个营养级的误差范围之内)。因此,氮稳定同位素法是一种研究水生生态系统食物网营养位置的有效方法。其中,有8种鱼类的营养级与历史文献相比有所下降,分析方法的不同可能是原因之一,此外,这些鱼种摄食饵料生物营养级的下降也是导致其营养级降低的另一个主要原因。根据营养级计算的结果,构建了胶州湾食物网的连续营养谱,胶州湾食物网中,绝大多数生物种类都属于初级和中级肉食性种类。     

Amino acid nitrogen and carbon isotope data: Potential and implications for ecological studies

Explaining food web dynamics, stability, and functioning depend substantially on understanding of feeding relations within a community. Bulk stable isotope ratios (SIRs) in natural abundance are well‐established tools to express direct and indirect feeding relations as continuous variables across time and space. Along with bulk SIRs, the SIRs of individual amino acids (AAs) are now emerging as a promising and complementary method to characterize the flow and transformation of resources across a diversity of organisms, from microbial domains to macroscopic consumers. This significant AA‐SIR capacity is based on empirical evidence that a consumer''s SIR, specific to an individual AA, reflects its diet SIR coupled with a certain degree of isotopic differences between the consumer and its diet. However, many empirical ecologists are still unfamiliar with the scope of applicability and the interpretative power of AA‐SIR. To fill these knowledge gaps, we here describe a comprehensive approach to both carbon and nitrogen AA‐SIR assessment focusing on two key topics: pattern in AA‐isotope composition across spatial and temporal scales, and a certain variability of AA‐specific isotope differences between the diet and the consumer. On this basis we review the versatile applicability of AA‐SIR to improve our understanding of physiological processes as well as food web functioning, allowing us to reconstruct dominant basal dietary sources and trace their trophic transfers at the specimen and community levels. Given the insightful and opportunities of AA‐SIR, we suggest future applications for the dual use of carbon and nitrogen AA‐SIR to study more realistic food web structures and robust consumer niches, which are often very difficult to explain in nature.     

Trophic structure of a coastal fish community determined with diet and stable isotope analyses

A combination of dietary guild analysis and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N) and carbon (δ¹³C) stable‐isotope analysis was used to assess the trophic structure of the fish community in Rhode Island and Block Island Sounds, an area off southern New England identified for offshore wind energy development. In the autumn of 2009, 2010 and 2011, stomach and tissue samples were taken from 20 fish and invertebrate species for analysis of diet composition and δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C signatures. The food chain in Rhode Island and Block Island Sounds comprises approximately four trophic levels within which the fish community is divided into distinct dietary guilds, including planktivores, benthivores, crustacivores and piscivores. Within these guilds, inter‐species isotopic and dietary overlap is high, suggesting that resource partitioning or competitive interactions play a major role in structuring the fish community. Carbon isotopes indicate that most fishes are supported by pelagic phytoplankton, although there is evidence that benthic production also plays a role, particularly for obligate benthivores such as skates Leucoraja spp. This type of analysis is useful for developing an ecosystem‐based approach to management, as it identifies species that act as direct links to basal resources as well as species groups that share trophic roles.     

Tracing dietary origins of aphids and the predatory beetle Propylea japonica in agricultural systems using stable isotope analyses

Tracing dietary origins of the predatory beetle Propylea japonica (Thunberg) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) aids understanding their roles in the food web and provides information to develop strategies for effective conservation in agroecosystems comprised of wheat [Triticum aestivum L. (Poaceae)], cotton [Hirsutum spp. (Malvaceae)], and maize [Zea mays L. (Poaceae)]. Intrinsic markers of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N) in P. japonica need to be developed to ascertain the source(s) of diet. Experiments were carried out to examine the changes of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N among the three crops, pests (wheat, cotton, and maize aphids; all Hemiptera: Aphididae), and P. japonica fed on aphids of each of the three crops. Results indicated that δ¹³C values in P. japonica fed on wheat, cotton, and maize aphids were ?27.2 to ?26.5‰, ?24.2 to ?23.9‰, and ?11.0 to ?10.7‰, respectively, whereas their δ¹⁵N values were 1.1 to 2.9‰, 6.0 to 7.4‰, and ?0.6 to 0.1‰, respectively. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N plots clearly identify the three crops, the dietary origins of the aphids, and the host origins of the aphid prey consumed by the ladybird beetles, as each pathway displays a non‐overlapping pattern. Based on the values of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N of the three food webs, dietary origins can be traced in the predatory beetle P. japonica derived from wheat, cotton, and maize crops.     

Effects of sample preparation on stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen in marine invertebrates: implications for food web studies using stable isotopes

Trophic ecology has benefitted from the use of stable isotopes for the last three decades. However, during the last 10 years, there has been a growing awareness of the isotopic biases associated with some pre-analytical procedures that can seriously hamper the interpretation of food webs. We have assessed the extent of such biases by: (1) reviewing the literature on the topic, and (2) compiling C and N isotopic values of marine invertebrates reported in the literature with the associated sample preparation protocols. The factors considered were: acid-washing, distilled water rinsing (DWR), sample type (whole individuals or pieces of soft tissues), lipid content, and gut contents. Two-level ANOVA revealed overall large and highly significant effects of acidification for both delta(13)C values (up to 0.9 per thousand decrease) and delta(15) N values (up to 2.1 per thousand decrease in whole individual samples, and up to 1.1 per thousand increase in tissue samples). DWR showed a weak overall effect with delta(13)C increments of 0.6 per thousand (for the entire data set) or decrements of 0.7 per thousand in delta(15) N values (for tissue samples). Gut contents showed no overall significant effect, whereas lipid extraction resulted in the greatest biases in both isotopic signatures (delta(13)C, up to -2.0 per thousand in whole individuals; delta(15)N, up to +4.3 per thousand in tissue samples). The study analyzed separately the effects of the various factors in different taxonomic groups and revealed a very high diversity in the extent and direction of the effects. Maxillopoda, Gastropoda, and Polychaeta were the classes that showed the largest isotopic shifts associated with sample preparation. Guidelines for the standardization of sample preparation protocols for isotopic analysis are proposed both for large and small marine invertebrates. Broadly, these guidelines recommend: (1) avoiding both acid washing and DWR, and (2) performing lipid extraction and gut evacuation in most cases.     

不同林型地表甲虫食性及营养级关系：基于碳氮稳定同位素分析

土壤动物联结着生态系统地上与地下部分的物质循环和能量流动,对生态系统的结构、功能及过程起着重要的调控作用。地表甲虫作为典型的大型土壤动物,在食物网中占有重要的位置,因此对不同林型地表甲虫的δ¹³C、δ¹⁵N同位素特征及营养关系研究对了解森林土壤动物的食性特征进而保护森林生物多样性是十分必要的。采集了小兴安岭凉水自然保护区6种不同林型的地表甲虫共10科31种,利用稳定同位素技术测定了甲虫中的δ¹³C、δ¹⁵N含量,并分析不同林型内地表甲虫的δ¹³C、δ¹⁵N值及营养级差异。结果表明6、7月份不同林型地表甲虫的δ¹³C、δ¹⁵N值差异显著(P<0.05),其中δ¹³C值在原始阔叶红松林和次生白桦林显著高于落叶松人工林和阔叶红松择伐林。δ¹⁵N值在阔叶红松择伐林显著高于其他5种林型。不同林型地表甲虫的营养级差异显著(P<0.05),林型内各物种营养级差异不显著(P...     

Untangling the complex issue of dissolved organic carbon uptake: a stable isotope approach

1. We estimated uptake of stream water dissolved organic carbon (DOC) through a whole-stream addition of a ¹³C-DOC tracer coupled with laboratory measurements of bioavailability of the tracer and stream water DOC.
2. The tracer, a leachate of ¹³C-labelled tree tissues, was added to the head waters of White Clay Creek, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., over a 2-h period and followed 1.27 km downstream to generate mass transfer coefficients for DOC lability classes within the tracer.
3. From the longitudinal ¹³C uptake curve, we resolved labile and semi-labile DOC classes within the ¹³C-DOC tracer comprising 82% and 18% of the tracer respectively.
4. Plug-flow laboratory bioreactors colonized and maintained with stream water were used to determine the concentration of stream water DOC fractions that had a similar lability to the labile and semi-labile classes within the tracer and we assumed that stream water DOC and tracer DOC with comparable lability fractions in the bioreactors behaved similarly in the stream, i.e. they had the same mass transfer coefficients.
5. A small fraction (8.6%) of the stream water DOC was labile, travelling 238 m downstream before being taken up. The remaining bioavailable stream water DOC was semi-labile and transported 4.5 km downstream before being taken up. These uptake lengths suggest that the labile DOC is an energy source within a stream reach, while the semi-labile DOC is exported out of the reach to larger rivers and the downstream estuary, where it may provide energy for marine microbial communities or simply be exported to the oceans.     

Altitudinal gradients of grassland carbon and nitrogen isotope composition are recorded in the hair of grazers

Aim The hair of grazers provides an isotopic record of environmental and nutritional signals. Here, we assess the effect of altitude on the carbon and nitrogen isotope composition of the hair of ruminant grazers and its relation to grassland vegetation, to evaluate the use of hair isotope data for ecosystem reconstruction, animal nutritional ecology and biogeochemical studies in montane environments. Location European Alps. Methods We sampled grassland vegetation (pure C₃) and the hair of ruminants along an altitudinal gradient (400–2500 m), and analysed their isotope composition (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N). Results were compared with published effects of altitude on ¹³C in C₃ plants at the species level and on ¹⁵N at the community level. The study was complemented with a comparison of diet and hair isotope composition in ruminants held in confinement. Results δ¹³C of hair increased (c. 1.1‰ km⁻¹) and δ¹⁵N decreased (c. 1.1‰ km⁻¹) with altitude. The same changes occurred in local grassland vegetation, and in regional to global grassland data sets. Offsets between hair and vegetation ¹³C or ¹⁵N (‘diet–hair shift’) were independent of altitude. Sheep (Ovis aries) and cattle (Bos taurus) exhibited a ¹³C shift near +3‰, but that of goats (Capra hircus) was larger (+4.2‰) in alpine environments and in confinement. The diet–hair shift for ¹⁵N was more variable (+2.1 to +3.6‰). Main conclusions Grazer hair provides a faithful spatially and temporally integrated record of grassland isotope composition, useful for ecosystem and environment reconstruction. The effect of altitude on hair ¹⁵N is important for studies of trophic relationships: an altitude shift of 2000 m produced the same effect in hair ¹⁵N as would a shift from an animal tissue‐based to a plant‐based diet. The similarity of altitude effects on δ¹³C of individual plant species, vegetation and hair indicates that the effect of altitude on species‐level ‘intrinsic water use efficiency’ scales up linearly to the community and landscape level.     

基于胃含物分析和稳定同位素技术研究鳀的摄食生态

鳀是重要的渔业资源捕捞对象,同时也是生态系统营养动力学研究的关键种.基于2020年和2008-2009年东海区采集的鳀样品,结合胃含物分析和肌肉碳、氮稳定同位素技术,分析了鳀的食物组成、食性昼夜差异、不同发育阶段的食性转变及其营养级,研究鳀的摄食生态.胃含物分析显示,鳀主要摄食浮游甲壳类和小型鱼类,优势饵料依次为太平洋...     

基于稳定同位素研究海州湾短吻红舌鳎的摄食生态

根据2018年春季和秋季在海州湾海域进行底拖网调查采集的样品,基于碳氮稳定同位素分析,对海州湾短吻红舌鳎的摄食生态进行研究.结果 表明:海州湾短吻红舌鳎的δ13C值平均值为(-17.79±1.00)‰,其范围在-20.75‰～-15.91‰;δ15N值平均值为(9.37±1.33)‰,其范围在5.98‰～ 12.02‰...     

Use of stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in insect trophic ecology

Insects are the most diverse organisms and often the most abundant animals in some ecosystems. Despite the importance of their functional roles and of the knowledge for conservation, the trophic ecology of many insect species is not fully understood. In this review, I present how stable carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) isotopes have been used to reveal the trophic ecology of insects over the last 30 years. The isotopic studies on insects have used differences in C isotope ratios between C₃ and C₄ plants, along vertical profiles of temperate and tropical forest stands, and between terrestrial and aquatic resources. These differences enable exploration of the relative importance of the food resources, as well as movement and dispersal of insects across habitats. The ¹³C‐enrichment (approximately 3‰) caused by saprotrophic fungi can allow the estimation of the importance of fungi in insect diets. Stable N isotopes have revealed food resource partitioning across diverse insect species above and belowground. Detritivorous insects often show a large trophic enrichment in ¹³C (up to 3‰) and ¹⁵N (up to 10‰) relative to the food substrates, soil organic matter. These values are greater than those commonly used for estimation of trophic level. This enrichment likely reflects the prevalence of soil microbial processes, such as fungal development and humification, influencing the isotopic signatures of diets in detritivores. Isotope analysis can become an essential tool in the exploration of insect trophic ecology in terms of biogeochemical C and N cycles, including trophic interactions, plant physiological and soil microbial processes.     

Diets of crustacean zooplankton,inferred from stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses,in lakes with varying allochthonous dissolved organic carbon content

We used stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses to estimate the relative proportions of three putative food sources (1) algae, (2) allochthonous organic matter (but including also heterotrophic bacteria and green-sulphur bacteria having similar isotopic values) and (3) methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) in the diets of crustacean zooplankton in five small boreal lakes representing a gradient of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration from ca. 5 to 40 mg C l⁻¹. The lakes were sampled in May, after establishment of stratification, and again in October during autumnal mixing of the water column. IsoSource mixing model outputs indicated that the proportion of algae in the diets of zooplankton was generally higher in May than in October, and that bacteria contributed to the diets of both cladocerans and copepods. Our results indicate that bacteria, especially MOB, can make an appreciable contribution to zooplankton diets in these small lakes, even in those with relatively low DOC concentrations.