Development of new reliable environmental proxies for reconstructing bottom-water conditions

我们利用定制的高精度分析系统对多个物种的单个底栖有孔虫的同位素组成进行了分析，发现不同物种的底栖有孔虫贝壳与周围底层海水之间的同位素不平衡程度与个体间的同位素变化有关。因此，我们可以利用个体间的同位素变化来选择合适的物种作为底层水的替代物。我们的发现将允许使用底栖有孔虫的同位素数据作为重建过去底水条件的更可靠的替代。

We analyzed the isotopic composition of individual benthic foraminifera of multiple species by using a customized high-precision analytical system, and found that the magnitude of the isotopic disequilibrium between benthic foraminiferal shell and the surrounding bottom seawater in different species is correlated with inter-individual isotopic variations. As a result, we can choose suitable species as bottom-water proxies by using the inter-individual isotopic variations. Our findings will allow the use of isotope data for benthic foraminifera as more reliable proxies for reconstructing past bottom-water conditions.