Variation in δD values of a single, species-specific molecular biomarker: a study of miliacin throughout a field of broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum L.).

Compound-specific δD analyses of land plant-derived biomarkers preserved in lake sediments are gaining increasing interest in paleoclimatic studies because of their potential to record essential information on the climatic conditions that prevailed at the time of their synthesis. The accuracy of inferences about climate from these analyses could be better constrained with more study of the variability in the δD values of possible inputs at catchment scales. We measured the δD values of miliacin (olean-18-en-3β-ol methyl ether) extracted from the seeds of millet plants collected in 21 stands spatially distributed in a field with visually heterogeneous soil organic matter contents.