Key information
Scale:
The dataset is represented by 1 km hexagon cellsCoverage:
Great BritainAvailability:
FreeFormat:
Excel data, GIS polygon data (ESRI), and online map viewer.Price:
Free grid data available under the Open Government Licence. Please acknowledge the material.
Uses:
Regional-level to National-level useGet data
Free access
Our free data is available under the Open Government Licence. Please acknowledge reproduced BGS materials.
Online map viewerExcel dataGIS dataSupporting documents
The biosphere isotope domains (Great Britain) data comprises analysis and location-specific information for strontium, oxygen and sulphur isotopic variation for Great Britain.

Biosphere isotope domains (Great Britain) data map. BGS © UKRI – Contains OS data © Crown copyright 2020.
The dataset consists of three components:
- Excel data containing sample information (strontium, oxygen (groundwater), oxygen (tooth enamel) and sulphur)
- GIS dataset showing the distribution of four domains across Britain (strontium, oxygen (groundwater), oxygen (tooth enamel) and sulphur )
- an accompanying web portal for viewing and interrogating the GIS data
This dataset brings together:
- the oxygen isotope groundwater map published by Darling et al. (2003)
- an update to the strontium isotope biosphere map published by Evans et al. (2010)
- a new sulphur dataset for plants in England and Wales
- the oxygen isotope composition of human tooth enamel based on Evans et al. (2012)
These four layers can be interrogated to produce a distribution map of the different isotope compositions that can be found across Britain. Specifically it contains:
- Biosphere strontium (87Sr/86Sr): strontium isotope variation derived from over 900 strontium samples, predominantly from plants and water
- Oxygen δ18O PO4 ‰(VSMOW) (human enamel): oxygen isotope variations in tooth enamel given as the mean and 1SD of ‘local’ populations
- Oxygen δ18O drinking water ‰ (VSMOW): oxygen isotope variations in groundwater across Great Britain
- Sulphur δ34S ‰ (VCDT) plants: sulphur isotope variation for a number of key geological units (chalk, Jurassic clay and oolitic limestone) as well as a coastal effects (sea spray) zone
This resource is aimed at archaeologists using skeletal analysis to study the geographic origins, movements and diet of past people and populations. The data can also be used in modern studies of bird and fish migration, tracking sources of illegal importation of materials and authentication of food origins.