Measurements of strontium isotope ratios in birds'feather s could help unravel the mysteries of their migration patterns.Recent concerns about the spread of bird flu means there is an urgent need to find better ways of monitoring the movements of migrating birds.Laura Font and colleagues at the University of Durham,UK,have developed a technique based on thermal ionisation mass spectrometry that can measure very low concentrations of strontium isotopes in bird feathers.This has allowed them to map how the isotopic composition of strontium in feathers of the sedge warbler varies with geographic location.
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