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- Title
Evaluation of cooking effects on otolith stable carbon and oxygen isotope values of teleostean fish Pomadasys kaakan (Cuvier, 1830).
- Authors
Wang, Yen‐Chun; Chang, Yi‐Jay; Wang, Pei‐Ling; Shiao, Jen‐Chieh
- Abstract
Rationale: For years, archaeologists, climatologists, and ecologists have used stable oxygen isotope values (δ13C, δ18O) in fish otoliths from archaeological sites to reconstruct the habitats, paleo‐temperature, and seasonality of the fish captures. Otoliths from archaeological sites might have been heated when ancient people cooked the fish for food. Therefore, there are debates as to whether the cooking behaviors would cause further isotopic fractionations of the carbonate in the otoliths. Methods: In this study, we have evaluated the effects of the cooking methods on the otolith δ13C and δ18O values by comparing the otoliths of the javelin grunter (Pomadasys kaakan) from the same individuals, with the left otoliths taken out before the different cooking processes. Otolith sections of the fish were then made and several subsamples were milled along the microstructures visible in the otolith pairs, mostly annual check rings, followed by the stable isotope analyses. Results: There were no morphological changes between the cooked and uncooked otoliths. The δ13C and δ18O values were highly consistent for the otolith subsamples between the cooked and uncooked pairs, suggesting none or trivial effects of the cooking processes on the isotopic values of the otoliths. In addition, some javelin grunters showed lower δ13C (−5‰ to −6‰) and δ18O (−4‰ to −5‰) values deposited in the wide translucent zone of the otoliths, suggesting seasonal migration of the fish to estuaries during the summer. Conclusions: This study suggests that cooking processes do not change otolith stable isotopic compositions and will therefore allow for future research to use the otolith δ13C and δ18O values to better understand the life history and used habitats of the preserved fish remains in the middens.
- Subjects
OXYGEN isotopes; STABLE isotopes; STABLE isotope analysis; CARBON isotopes; FISH migration; OTOLITHS; FISH as food; ISOTOPIC fractionation
- Publication
Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry: RCM, 2022, Vol 36, Issue 4, p1
- ISSN
0951-4198
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1002/rcm.9233