So far in this course we have dealt entirely with the evolution of characters that are controlled by simple Mendelian inheritance at a single locus. There are notes on the course website about gametic disequilibrium and how allele frequencies change at two loci simultaneously, but we didn’t discuss them. In every example we’ve considered we’ve imagined that we could understand something about evolution by examining the evolution of a single gene. That’s the domain of classical population genetics. For the next few weeks we’re going to be exploring a field that’s actually older than classical population genetics, although the approach we’ll be taking to it involves the use of population genetic machinery. If you know a little about the history of evolutionary biology, you may know that after the rediscovery of Mendel’s work in 1900 there was a heated debate between the “biometricians” (e.g., Galton and Pearson) and the “Mendelians” (e.g., de Vries, Correns, Bateson, and Morgan). Biometricians asserted that the really important variation in evolution didn’t follow Mendelian rules. Height, weight, skin color, and similar traits seemed to

Human biochemical genetics

The influence of diet on the distribution of nitrogen isotopes in animals was investigated by analyzing animals grown in the laboratory on diets of constant nitrogen isotopic composition. 
The isotopic composition of the nitrogen in an animal reflects the nitrogen isotopic composition of its diet. The δ^(15)N values of the whole bodies of animals are usually more positive than those of their diets. Different individuals of a species raised on the same diet can have significantly different δ^(15)N values. The variability of the relationship between the δ^(15)N values of animals and their diets is greater for different species raised on the same diet than for the same species raised on different diets. Different tissues of mice are also enriched in ^(15)N relative to the diet, with the difference between the δ^(15)N values of a tissue and the diet depending on both the kind of tissue and the diet involved. The δ^(15)N values of collagen and chitin, biochemical components that are often preserved in fossil animal remains, are also related to the δ^(15)N value of the diet. 
The dependence of the δ^(15)N values of whole animals and their tissues and biochemical components on the δ^(15)N value of diet indicates that the isotopic composition of animal nitrogen can be used to obtain information about an animal's diet if its potential food sources had different δ^(15)N values. The nitrogen isotopic method of dietary analysis probably can be used to estimate the relative use of legumes vs non-legumes or of aquatic vs terrestrial organisms as food sources for extant and fossil animals. However, the method probably will not be applicable in those modern ecosystems in which the use of chemical fertilizers has influenced the distribution of nitrogen isotopes in food sources. 
The isotopic method of dietary analysis was used to reconstruct changes in the diet of the human population that occupied the Tehuacan Valley of Mexico over a 7000 yr span. Variations in the δ^(15)C and δ^(15)N values of bone collagen suggest that C_4 and/or CAM plants (presumably mostly corn) and legumes (presumably mostly beans) were introduced into the diet much earlier than suggested by conventional archaeological analysis.

Influence of Diet On the Distribtion of Nitrogen Isotopes in Animals

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A DNA test to sex most birds.

Background 
Stable isotope analysis is increasingly being utilised across broad areas of ecology and biology. Key to much of this work is the use of mixing models to estimate the proportion of sources contributing to a mixture such as in diet estimation.


Methodology 
By accurately reflecting natural variation and uncertainty to generate robust probability estimates of source proportions, the application of Bayesian methods to stable isotope mixing models promises to enable researchers to address an array of new questions, and approach current questions with greater insight and honesty.


Conclusions 
We outline a framework that builds on recently published Bayesian isotopic mixing models and present a new open source R package, SIAR. The formulation in R will allow for continued and rapid development of this core model into an all-encompassing single analysis suite for stable isotope research.

/pdf/source-partitioning-using-stable-isotopes-coping-with-too-4qd1pzfyh0.pdf

Source partitioning using stable isotopes: coping with too much variation.

Stopover-site feather isotopes uncover African non-breeding grounds of migratory passerines

The geographic origin of migratory birds can be traced using measurements of stable-hydrogen isotopes (δ2H) in their feathers In continental Europe, local amount-weighted mean annual δ2H in precipitation varies with latitude, so that assignments of geographical origin of bird feathers are linked to latitude Consequently, a potential northward latitudinal shift in the distribution of a species’ abundance is expected to translate into a shift in δ2H values for feathers grown on the breeding grounds We analyzed δ2H in feathers from migrant individuals of Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla) and Ortolan Bunting (Emberiza hortulana) collected in France from the mid-nineteenth century to recent years (2015), to assess potential temporal trends in feather δ2H that may indicate changes in source populations or a shifting breeding range These two species have shown long-term population declines in Europe with subsequent range retractions, but we did not find obvious differences in feather δ2H values in samples collected over the last 160 years One potential explanation for this result is that population declines occurred similarly at all latitudes across the breeding ranges without involving a measurable latitudinal shift in abundance that could translate into changes in feather δ2H values However, this result may also be due to potential temporally shifting terrestrial spatial δ2H gradients (ie, isoscape) similar to a shift in bird abundances, or to limited northward range shifts that do not translate into detectable trends in feather δ2H

/pdf/feather-stable-isotope-d2h-measurements-suggest-no-2rm4fofew5.pdf

Feather stable isotope (δ2H) measurements suggest no historical variation in latitudinal origin of migrants in two declining songbirds

Stable-hydrogen (δ2H), nitrogen (δ15N), and carbon (δ13C) isotopes are used to decipher broad movement patterns and trophic relationships among diverse species, and an improved understanding of factors controlling natural variation in tissue-isotope measurements will enhance these applications. To evaluate the rearing environment and family-related effects on the isotopic composition of tissues, we cross-fostered nestling tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor, Vieillot 1808) and American kestrels (Falco sparverius, Linnaeus 1758) by swapping recently hatched birds (<4 days old) among nest boxes and collecting blood and feathers prior to fledging. To assess developmental effects, we measured δ2H in blood and feathers of captive mallard (Anas platyrhynchos, Linnaeus 1758) ducklings challenged energetically during growth. Stable isotope composition was not strongly related to nest box type or natal nest (i.e., family of origin) effects in swallows and kestrels; tissue-isotope composition was related to rearing environment, indicative of differences in nest and parental quality or parental provisioning tactics. Blood and feather δ2H values in swallows were positively related to antecedent maximum ambient temperature, and unrelated to elevated energy expenditure in mallards. The average differences between δ2H in blood and feathers were similar for nestling swallows (27‰, 32‰; two sites) and mallards (26‰, 30‰; two age groups), and lower than in nestling kestrels (50‰). Strong species-specific patterns in blood-feather differences were not observed for δ15N and δ13C in swallows or kestrels; divergent δ2H results may be related to differences in nest ambient conditions, diet composition, or physiological processes affecting hydrogen assimilation during growth and feather synthesis. In swallows, tissue-isotope values reflected parental prey selection from spatially distinct food webs during nestling development with little effect(s) of family of origin, egg composition, or early growth.

Experimental Evaluation of δ2H, δ13C and δ15N Variability in Blood and Feathers of Wild and Captive Birds: Implications for Interspecific Food Web Studies

Spatial and Temporal Habitat Use by Bats Along a Vertical Gradient in Temperate Forest

Seabird eggs have been used extensively to assay contaminants in marine food webs, but links to trophic level or feeding location have remained poorly understood due to limitations inherent in conventional dietary studies. Stable-isotope analysis of bird eggs may be used to infer trophic position and feeding location of adult seabirds and can be readily correlated with measurements of egg contaminant levels. The authors measured stable-carbon ({delta}{sup 13}C) and nitrogen ({delta}{sup 15}N) isotope abundance, and organochlorine contaminants (DDTs, PCBs, chlordanes, etc.) in eggs from Cassin`s Auklet (Ptychoramphus aleutica), Common Murre (Uria aalge), Pigeon Guillemot (Cepphus columba). Rhinoceros Auklet (Cerorhinca monocerata), Pelagic Cormorant (Phalacrocorax pelagicus), Brandt`s Cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus), and Western Gull (Larus) from Southeast Farallon Island together with rockfish (Sebastes spp.), anchovy (Engraulis spp.), and euphausiid prey from the Gulf of the Farallones. Consistent with its planktivorous diet and pelagic feeding habits, Cassin`s Auklet showed the lowest mean {delta}{sup 15}N value and the least enriched {delta}{sup 13}C values. Measures of trophic level and foraging location were constructed for all other seabirds relative to these isotopic endpoints. Contaminant levels in the eggs and fish will be interpreted in light of the stable-isotope results.

The influence of trophic level and feeding location of the levels of organochlorine contaminants in seabird eggs as revealed by stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis

Keith A. Hobson

Papers

Stopover-site feather isotopes uncover African non-breeding grounds of migratory passerines

Feather stable isotope (δ2H) measurements suggest no historical variation in latitudinal origin of migrants in two declining songbirds

Experimental Evaluation of δ2H, δ13C and δ15N Variability in Blood and Feathers of Wild and Captive Birds: Implications for Interspecific Food Web Studies

Spatial and Temporal Habitat Use by Bats Along a Vertical Gradient in Temperate Forest

The influence of trophic level and feeding location of the levels of organochlorine contaminants in seabird eggs as revealed by stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis