Laser‑based isotope profiling in avian tissues
The authors of a recent paper in the Journal of Ornithology, titled ‘Laser‑based isotope profiling in avian tissues: a high‑resolution method for ecological reconstruction’ used LA-IRMS, an advanced analytical technique pioneered by a collaboration between Sercon, Teledyne Photon Machines and Terra Analitic in their research. The technique combines laser ablation with isotope ratio mass spectrometry to measure the isotopic composition of solid materials at a microscopic, high-resolution scale without the need for extensive chemical processing.
Here’s a section from the abstract – you’ll find a link below:
“Keratinous and bony tissues preserve ecological information, yet conventional isotope methods often lack the spatial resolution to detect fine-scale dietary or habitat transitions. Here, we present a high-resolution framework using laser ablation isotope ratio mass spectrometry (LA-IRMS) to reconstruct stable carbon isotope (δ13C) chronologies in feathers, claws, bills, and cranial bones across three avian species. LA-IRMS measurements showed strong agreement with those from conventional elemental analysers of identical feather sections, supporting the reliability of the method for high-resolution isotope profiling.”
Samples were analysed using LA-IRMS at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL). The system consisted of a UV laser (Teledyne LSX 213G2+, Nd:YAG Laser; wavelength 213 nm), a sample chamber (IsoScell, Terra Analitic, Alba Iulia, Romania), a combustion oven, and a Cryoflex trace gas system (Sercon, Crewe, UK) for CO₂ collection using liquid nitrogen (LN₂) traps. Gas separation was performed using a GC column (Rt-Q-Bond column, 0.53 mm ID, 30 m, 20 μm, Restek), and δ13C values were measured with an IRMS (HS2022, Sercon, Crewe, UK), with all components controlled via dedicated software.
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