Project Context – Sarg’Alien Project

The Sarg’Alien project aims to study the invasive dynamics of Sargassum muticum in the Bay of Seine. This invasive macroalga is rapidly expanding and could serve as an indicator of coastal water eutrophication. The project uses a multidisciplinary approach combining biology, marine ecology, and remote sensing.

The project is built around three complementary actions:

1. Sargassum proliferation analysis: study of offshore floating mats and strandings.
2. Remote sensing tool development: mapping and biomass quantification offshore and in intertidal areas.
3. Bioindicator assessment: potential of Sargassum muticum as a coastal eutrophication indicator.

Main Responsibilities

• Design and implement ecological monitoring protocols for Sargassum muticum in intertidal and subtidal areas (field campaigns, biometry, strandings).
• Develop and validate satellite image processing algorithms for Sargassum detection and mapping.
• Integrate and process multi-source data (satellite, drone, field), and ensure calibration/validation with in situ data.
• Develop models linking Sargassum biomass to environmental indicators (eutrophication); assess their bioindicator potential.
• Contribute to regulatory tools (e.g., Water Framework Directive).
• Disseminate results (technical reports, scientific publications) and collaborate with the interdisciplinary project team.

Research Team

The position is based at the MERSEA laboratory (University of Caen Normandy), in collaboration with CEVA and CNAM/Intechmer. The engineer will join the FORSEAS team and work closely with a marine biology technician also recruited for the project.

MERSEA is a marine science research unit studying organisms from molecules to ecosystems. It addresses both global challenges (climate change, contamination, anthropogenic pressures) and local applications (fisheries, aquaculture in the English Channel and beyond) through its two teams:

• PHARE: focused on physiology and molecular biology
• FORSEAS: focused on organisms and ecosystems

Research addresses both broad fundamental challenges (warming, contamination, human impact) and local applications (fisheries, aquaculture in the English Channel and abroad).

More info: https://mersea-lab.f  https://mersea-lab.fr