My main research interest is aquatic ecology, mainly fish assemblage dynamics. I have been studying fish in a variety of ecosystems (estuaries, coral reefs or other coastal and pelagic marine environments from Europe, south Pacific, northern Gulf of Mexico, west and south Africa, northwest Indian Ocean). I combine diverse methodological approaches to provide a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of fish populations in the context of climatic and environmental variability (trophic studies based on gut contents, stable isotopes, fatty acids, and/or multivariate statistical approaches). I also have interest in integrative approaches linking human and social sciences and functional ecology, in order to investigate the response of natural communities to anthropogenic influences. The latter approach is illustrated through multiple collaborative projects studying various natural communities ranging from plants to vertebrates, with a particular effort on transition ecosystems such as wetlands, and estuarine communities.

You can find me on LinkedIn, ResearchGate and GoogleScholar.

Selected publications:

Carassou L, Whitfield AK, Bergamino L, Moyo S, Richoux NB. Trophic dynamics of the Cape stumpnose (Rhabdosargus lubi, Sparidae) across three adjacent aquatic habitats. Estuaries and Coasts. 2016, 93, 1212-1233.

Magoro ML, Whitfield AK, Carassou L. Predation by alien largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides Lacépede 1802 (Centrarchidae: Perciformes) on indigenous marine fish species in the Kowie system, South Africa. African Journal of Aquatic Sciences. 2015, 40, 81-88.

Carassou L, Hernandez FJ, Graham WM. Change and recovery of coastal mesozooplankton community structure during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Environmental Research Letters. 2014, 9, 124003.

Carassou L, Léopold M, Guillemot N, Wantiez L, Kulbicki M. Does herbivorous fish protection really improve coral reef resilience? A case study from New Caledonia (South Pacific). PLoS ONE. 2013, 8(4), e60564.

Carassou L, Hernandez FJ, Powers SP, Graham WM. Cross-shore, seasonal and depth-related structure of ichtyoplankton assemblages in coastal Alabama. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. 2012, 141: 1137-1150.

Carassou L, Dzwonkowski B, Hernandez FJ, Powers SP, Park K, Graham WM, Mareska J. Environmental influences on juvenile fish assemblages in a river-dominated coastal system. Marine and Coastal Fisheries: Dynamics, Management and Ecosystem Science. 2011, 3,  411-427.