title: Element distribution over the surface of fish scales and its connection to the geochemical environment of habitats: a potential biogeochemical tag.
abstract: The elemental content of fish scales is known to be a reliable biogeochemical tag for tracing the origin of fishes. In this study, this correlation is further confirmed to exist on the surface of fish scales using a novel environmental analytical method, laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), which bypasses several complicated sample preparation procedures such as acid digestion and pre-concentration. The results suggest that the elemental ratios of Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca, and Mn/Ca on the surface of fish scales are strongly correlated with the geochemical environment of their original habitat. This correlation is further demonstrated to be sensitive to variation of water in the habitat due to the adsorbed inorganic ions. In this sense, the limitation of fish scales as a biogeochemical tag is the sensitivity of LA-ICP-MS toward the studied elements. Graphical abstract Illustration of the connection between element distribution pattern over the surface of fish scales and biogeochemical environment of its habitat.
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Engineering and Environment Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan. thwang@mx.nthu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: TsingHai
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Engineering and Environment Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yan-Chen
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Engineering and Environment Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chia-Che
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Engineering and Environment Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu-Rong
authors.initials: YR
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Engineering and Environment Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yi-Kong
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Hsieh
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Engineering and Environment Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan. cfwang@mx.nthu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Chu-Fang
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017753:Ecosystem; D004777:Environment; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D005399:Fishes / Q000378:metabolism*; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014131:Trace Elements; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Bioindicator; Biological tags; Fish scales; Geochemical properties of habitat; LA-ICP-MS