Ref ID:	34384
Ref Type:	Journal Article
Authors:	Cocks, M. P. Balfour, D. A. Stock, W. D.
Title:	On the uptake of ornithogenic products by plants on the inland mountains of Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, using stable isotopes
Date:	1998
Source:	Polar Biology
Abstract:	Abstract Breeding snow petrels (Pagodroma nivea) may be a major source of nutrients for the ecosystems on the inland nunataks (mountain outcrops) of continental Antarctica. To test this theory, the d15N and d13C values of soil and plants (moss, lichen and algae) from 11 nunataks with and without breeding snow petrels in north-western Dronning Maud Land were compared. High d15N values in all samples from nunataks with breeding birds provide a strong indication of the presence of breeding birds, as well as the use of bird-derived nitrogen by the plants of these ecosystems. The d13Cvalues showed little difference between the nunataks and are not a useful indicator of bird effects on ecosystem development.
Date Created:	8/10/2001
Volume:	20
Number:	2
Page Start:	107
Page End:	111