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(super 14) C dating of modern marine and estuarine shellfish.
Abstract
We measured the (super 14) C content of 36 living marine molluscs from Tairua Harbour and the rocky coast on the Coromandel Peninsula of New Zealand. We identified species suitable for radiocarbon dating and show that the open marine intertidal zone is enriched in (super 14) C compared to the open marine subtidal zone or estuary. We also found a uniform (super 14) C distribution in the Tairua Harbour, by analyzing samples of the estuarine bivalve Austrovenus stutchburyi collected up to 5 km from the harbor entrance.
Keywords
estuarine environment;intertidal environment;Coromandel Peninsula;subtidal environment;Tairua Harbour;Bivalvia;Austrovenus stutchburyi;enrichment;modern analogs;spatial variations;coastal environment;concentration;Australasia;New Zealand;North Island;living taxa;C 14;carbon;isotopes;radioactive isotopes;Invertebrata;Mollusca;absolute age