Isotope ratio of carbon in lipids of the zooplankton from the Kuril-Kamchatka region of the Pacific Ocean

Isotopic composition has been studied of carbon of lipids of zooplancton in Kuril-Kamchatka region in the depth range from the surface down to 7km. The main task of the research is the investigation of isotopic composition variations along the vertical line - in producing and consuming zones under fairly uniform thermal conditions. The study has revealed that biochemical content of plancton in Kuril-Kamchatka region is characterized by elevated content of organic matter, the quantity of which, expressed in Csup(org), comprises from 41.9 to 59.5% of the dry weigth, that is 1.5-2 times more than Csup(org) preservation in zooplancton in the tropical part of the Indian Ocean. The plancton at the depth of 100-200 m from the cold intermediate layer and from that of 1000-2000 m has proved to be the richest in organic matter and lipids. As for the lipids content and fractionation, the greatest differences are observed between the surface plancton and that located lower, including the maximal depth, that is, between the producing and consuming zones