The worldwide marine radiocarbon reservoir effect: definitions, mechanisms, and prospects

When a carbon reservoir has a lower radiocarbon content than the atmosphere, this is referred to as a reservoir effect. This is expressed as an offset between the radiocarbon ages of samples from the two reservoirs at a single point in time. The marine reservoir effect (MRE) has been a major concern in the radiocarbon community, as it introduces an additional source of error that is often difficult to accurately quantify. For this reason, researchers are often reluctant to date marine material where they have another option. The influence of this phenomenon makes the study of the MRE important for a broad range of applications. The advent of Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) has reduced sample size requirements and increased measurement precision, in turn increasing the number of studies seeking to measure marine samples. These studies rely on overcoming the influence of the MRE on marine radiocarbon dates through the worldwide quantification of the local parameter ΔR, that is, the local variation from the global average MRE. Furthermore, the strong dependence on ocean dynamics makes the MRE a useful indicator for changes in oceanic circulation, carbon exchange between reservoirs, and the fate of atmospheric CO2, all of which impact Earth's climate. This article explores data from the Marine Reservoir Database and reviews the place of natural radiocarbon in oceanic records, focusing on key questions (e.g., changes in ocean dynamics) that have been answered by MRE studies and on their application to different subjects

Best practice methodology for 14C calibration of marine and mixed terrestrial/marine samples

There is a lack of detailed guidance in the published literature on how to calibrate 14C measurements made on marine or mixed marine/terrestrial (primarily human remains) samples. We describe what we consider to be the best approach towards achieving the most accurate calibrated age ranges, using the most appropriate ΔR and percentage marine diet estimates, and associated, realistic error terms on these values. However, this approach will increase the calibrated age range(s) by fully accounting for the variability in both the model and the material. While the discussion is based on examples from the UK and Iceland, the same fundamental arguments can be applied in any geographic location largely devoid of C4 plants as the high δ13C values from such plants can make identification of marine intake difficult to determine

Response to Beavan Athfield's “Comment on ‘Diet-Derived Variations in Radiocarbon and Stable Isotopes: A Case Study from Shag River Mouth, New Zealand’”

Beavan Athfield (2006) has commented on our recent paper in this journal (Higham et al. 2005). In our opinion, both in her response and in Beavan Athfield (2004) she misrepresents the evidence and conclusions presented by Anderson (2000). She claims (Beavan Athfield 2006:117) that Andersons (2000) Figure 6, which is reproduced as Beavan Athfields (2004) Figure 1, shows that ages of ancient rat bone gelatin in 1995-1996 (NZA numbers 4000-6000) were exclusively earlier than about 1000 BP, while those from 1997 onward (NZA numbers 7000+) were exclusively later than about 1000 BP. Beavan Athfield asserts that this is the result of Anderson (2000) ignoring 9 published accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) results from 1995-1996 that were younger than about 900 BP. These would be serious claims of poor scholarship, were they substantiated, but in fact, Anderson (2000, 2004) never asserted that the AMS results were distributed so exclusively, nor did he fail to take account of all published results.The Radiocarbon archives are made available by Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform February 202

Post-Clovis survival of American Mastodon in the southern Great Lakes Region of North America

The end of the Pleistocene in North America was marked by a wave of extinctions of large mammals, with the last known appearances of many species falling between ca. 11,000–10,000 14C yr BP. Temporally, this period overlaps with the Clovis Paleoindian cultural complex (11,190–10,530 14C yr BP) and with sudden climatic changes that define the beginning of the Younger Dryas chronozone (ca. 11,000–10,000 14C yr BP), both of which have been considered as potential proximal causes of this extinction event. Radiocarbon dating of enamel and filtered bone collagen from an extinct American Mastodon (Mammut americanum) from northern Indiana, USA, by accelerator mass spectrometer yielded direct dates of 10,055±40 14C yr BP and 10,032±40 14C yr BP, indicating that the animal survived beyond the Clovis time period and into the late Younger Dryas. Although the late survival of this species in mid-continental North America does not remove either humans or climatic change as contributing causes for the late Pleistocene extinctions, neither Clovis hunters nor the climatic perturbations initiating the Younger Dryas chronozone were immediately responsible for driving mastodons to extinction

Problems Associated with the AMS Dating of Small Bone Samples: The Question of the Arrival of Polynesian Rats to New Zealand

From the 18th International Radiocarbon Conference held in Wellington, New Zealand, September 1-5, 2003.We have AMS dated samples of Pacific rat (Rattus exulans) bone collagen and filtered gelatin samples from the prehistoric site of Shag River Mouth, New Zealand. The age of occupation of this site has previously been determined based on 50 radiocarbon measurements. The site dates to the late Archaic phase of southern New Zealand prehistory (about 650-500 BP; 14th-15th century AD). The results of rat bones which we have dated produce a range in ages, from about 980-480 BP, a difference we attribute to a combination of effects. Pretreatment appears to be an important variable, with results showing differences in 14C age between the progressive collagen and filtered gelatin chemical treatment stages. Amino acid profiles suggest there is a proteinaceous but non-collagenous contaminant which is removed by the more rigorous pretreatment. Stable isotopes vary between pretreatments, supporting the removal of a contaminant, or contaminants. Variation in d15N values imply a range in uptake of dietary protein, and might suggest a potential influence from the local aquatic environment or the consumption of marine-derived protein. Rats are opportunistic, omnivorous mammals, and, therefore, obtain carbon from a variety of reservoirs and so we ought to expect that in environments where there is a variety of reservoirs, these will be exploited. Taken together, the results show that rat bone AMS 14C determinations vary in comparison with the established age of the site, but are in notably better agreement with non-collagenous data than in previously published determinations (Anderson 1996).The Radiocarbon archives are made available by Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform February 202

Comment On “Diet-Derived Variations in Radiocarbon and Stable Isotopes: A Case Study from Shag River Mouth, New Zealand”

The Radiocarbon archives are made available by Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform February 202

Diet-Derived Variations in Radiocarbon and Stable Isotopes: A Case Study from Shag River Mouth, New Zealand

Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) determinations of rat bones from natural and cultural sites in New Zealand have produced ages at odds with the accepted date for early human settlement by over 1000 yr. Since rats are a human commensal, this implies either an earlier visitation by people or problems with the reliability of the AMS determinations. One explanation for the extreme ages is dietary variation involving movement of depleted radiocarbon through dietary food chains to rats. To investigate this, we 14C dated fauna from the previously well-dated site of Shag River Mouth. The faunal remains were of species that consumed carbon derived from a variety of environments within the orbit of the site, including the estuary, river, land, and sea. The 14C results showed a wide range in age among estuarine and freshwater species. Terrestrial and marine organisms produced ages within expectations. We also found differences between bone dated using the Oxford ultrafiltration method and those treated using the filtered gelatin method. This implies that contamination could also be of greater importance than previously thought.The Radiocarbon archives are made available by Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform February 202

Bomb Carbon as a Tracer of Dietary Carbon Sources in Omnivorous Mammals

From the 17th International Radiocarbon Conference held in Jerusalem, Israel, June 18-23, 2000.We have isolated amino acid groups from modern bone hydrolysates and compared their relative ∆14C value to assess the carbon contribution of diet to the overall radiocarbon signal in bone. We find that both essential and non-essential amino acids may produce widely varying 14C, relative to other amino acid groups in the hydrolysate and to the original whole bone protein. We hypothesize that the 14C variations in non-essential amino acids may be due to metabolic effects that utilize essential amino acid carbon skeletons in the creation of non-essential amino acids.The Radiocarbon archives are made available by Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform February 202

Reliability of Bone Gelatin AMS Dating: Rattus Exulans

A suite of 6 bone gelatin accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dates for Rattus exulans Peale and associated beta decay 14C dates for Austrovenus stutchburyi shell are presented for 4 middens at Pauatahanui, Wellington, New Zealand. Mean calibrated age ranges of Rattus exulans (520-435 BP and 350-330 BP at 95% confidence level) and shell (465-375 BP at 95% confidence level) from the 4 midden sites overlap. The agreement between Rattus exulans bone gelatin dates and associated shell provides an inter-sample comparison of 14C dating using both gas counting (beta decay) and AMS dating techniques. We examine the adequacy of the standard gelatinization treatment for bone samples, which has been employed consistently at the laboratory since 1995.This material was digitized as part of a cooperative project between Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries.The Radiocarbon archives are made available by Radiocarbon and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform February 202