SBC LTER: Land Ocean Reef: Time series of Carbon, Nitogen and Hydrogen isotopes, ongoing since 2009

Potentially important food sources to consumers on shallow subtidal reefs
include phytoplankton-dominated seston, kelp-derived detritus, and for locations adjacent to
sources of freshwater runoff, terrestrially-derived material. The SBC LTER is using stable carbon,
nitrogen and deuterium isotope ratio analysis to evaulate
the relative contribution of these sources to reef food webs. We collect seasonal samples from five
core SBCLTER research reefs (Arroyo Hondo, Naples, Arroyo Burro, Goleta bay and
Carpinteria), and areas adjacent. We routinely collect several types of samples: from giant kelp
(Macrocystis pyrifera), red, brown and green algae, terrestrial material (Oak leaves), stream, sediment and
ocean water particulate organic material, and a benthic polychaete worm (Diopatra). This information will be used to evaluate whether these isotopic values
differ enough from one another to permit the use of mixing models to estimate the contribution
of each source to the reef food web.