The products from the reaction of laser-ablated Ni atoms with CH4, O-2 and NO have been studied via laser-induced and dispersed fluorescence spectroscopies. NiC, NiH and NiO species have been detected between 410 and 510 nm. Twenty NiO bands have been rotationally analyzed for the first time and, in most instances, measurements of the (NiO)-Ni-58/(NiO)-Ni-60 isotopic shifts have been made. Dispersed fluorescence data have been collected at two excitation wavelengths, corresponding to two prominent LIF bands near 479.1 and 474.5 nm. Vibrational energies for all ground state levels up to nu = 9 have been determined. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.