Engineer

MAIN ACTIVITY

I am working in the framework of the Tara Go-See Research Federation (FR2022) aiming at a better understanding of the global marine microbiome diversity and function. As bio engineer of the schooner Tara, I organise all the operational aspects of the science activities related to Tara oceanographic campaigns and I take an active part in the design of the expedition and in the sampling strategy. More precisely, I I take care of the implementation of various and diverse protocols, standard or complex ones, and I ensure we maintain good practices and continuïty all along the mission, that can last up to 2 years. I spend from 4 to 6 months at sea per year.

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

Engineer in marine biology since 2015, I have been working on extremely diverse topics illustrating my taste for new challenges and my curiosity for various marine subjects. I started to work on benthic - and toxic- dinoflagellates of the genus Ostreopsis in the Mediterranean Sea with a 2 year contract in Tunisia with IRD (Institut de Recherche pour le Développement). Having enough of hot weather and microscopic species, i engaged in polar science activities as engineer in the french polar base Alfred Faure at Crozet Islands for 6 months, and then in Dumont D’Urville french base in Antarctica for 15 months. I was working for the French Polar Institute (IPEV) and for the CNRS, on penguins ecology and population dynamics, working with blood sampling, biometry, bio-logging deployment and acoustic studies. In 2020 I was back to France to work with Ifremer on the observation of coastal water, back to planctonic studies. Since 2022 i am the biological engineer of Tara, taking an active part into the oceanographic campaign.

2021 (January 2021 - now): engineer on Tara - Biological experimentation and instrumentation. Numerous embarkations - Follow-up and update of the FR Go-see protocols - Maintenance of the oceanographic equipment - interface between scientists and sailors - Logistics.
CNRS - Roscoff Biological Station.

2020 (3 months): Study engineer - Monitoring within the Lepidopen and Rephy programs. Daily shipments and sample conditioning - Water and shellfish sampling - CTD probe (parameterization and deployment) - Niskin bottle - Filtration - Chla - Nutrients.
French Institute for Research and Exploitation of the Sea (IFREMER) - Laboratory LER/Morbihan Pays de la Loire - Nantes.

2018 - 2020 (15 months): Ornithology engineer on the Dumont d'Urville base, Antarctica (Wintering). Antavia database management - Population monitoring - Logging of Adelie penguins (GPS/GLS and accelerometer) - Pittaging - Blood sampling - Dissections (stomach, liver, pectoral muscle). Adelie and Emperor penguins - Wilson's petrel - Antarctic fulmar - Snow petrel - Cape damsel.
Institut Polaire Paul--Emile Victor (IPEV) - Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien (IPHC) - CNRS - Dr. Le Bohec.

2017 - 2018 (6 months) : Ornithology engineer on the Alfred Faure base, Crozet Archipelago (summer campaign). Logging on king penguins - Pittaging - Blood sampling - Biometrics. King penguin and Gorfous - White-chinned petrel.Institut Polaire Paul-Emile Victor (IPEV) - Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien (IPHC) - CNRS - Dr. Robin - Dr. Handrich.

2015 - 2017 (2 years): Research assistant in Tunisia: Study of the impact of metal pollutants on the growth, physiology and toxicity of dinoflagellates.

2015 - M2 internship (5 months): Ecophysiology and geographical distribution of the benthic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis in the Mediterranean Sea.

2013-2014 (14 months): Mare Nostrum Project, sea kayaking expedition in the Mediterranean Sea.
- Study of the toxic epiphytic microalga Ostreopsis: sampling - data analyses.
- Acoustic monitoring along a coastal transect for the study of cetaceans and ambient noise. With Pr Glotin, Laboratory of Systems and Information Sciences, University of South Toulon Var.

2013 M1 internship (2 months): Hydrodynamics and phytoplankton in coastal environments: Mixing layer evolution and phytoplankton dynamics in 2012.

 

Publications

 

- Couet D., Jauzein C., Marrot S., Lemée R. Répartition of the benthic dinoflagellates Ostreopsis and Gambierdiscus : an up-­to-­date map in the Mediteranean sea. (in prep).

- Couet D., Pringault O., Bancon-­Montigny C., Briant N., Elbaz-­Poulichet F., Delpoux S., Kefi-­Daly Yahia O., BenGharbia H., Mrabet C., Hervé F., Rovillon G., Amzil Z., Laabir M. 2018. Effects of copper and butyltin compounds on the growth, photosynthetic activity and toxin production of two HAB dinoflagellates: The planktonic Alexandrium catenella and the benthic Ostreopsis cf. ovata. Aquatic Toxicology, 196, doi:10.1016/j.aquatox.2018.01.005.
- Mrabet C., Kefi-­Daly Yahia O., Couet D., Gueroun S., Pringault O. 2019. Consequences of a contaminant mixture of bisphenol A (BPA) and di-­(2-­ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), two plastic-­derived chemicals, on the diversity of coastal phytoplankton. Marine Pollution Bulletin 138:385-­396, doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.11.035.
- Mrabet C., Pringault O., Zmerli-­Triki H., Gharbia H., Couet D., Kefi-­Daly Yahia O. 2018. Impact of two plastic-­‐derived chemicals, the Bisphenol A and the di-­2-­
ethylhexyl phthalate, exposure on the marine toxic dinoflagellate Alexandrium pacificum. Marine Pollution Bulletin. doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2017.10.090.
-­ Gharbia H., Kefi-­Daly Yahia O., Cecchi P., Masseret E., Amzil Z., Hervé F., Rovillon G., Nouri H., Mrabet C., Couet D., Triki H., Laabir M. 2017. New insights on the species-­specific allelopathic interactions between macrophytes and marine HAB dinoflagellates. Plos One, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0187963.
-­ Jauzein C., Couet D., Blasco T., Lemée R. 2017. Uptake of dissolved inorganic and organic nitrogen by the benthic toxic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata. Harmful Algae, Vol. 65 doi:10.1016/j.hal.2017.04.005.