Jérémy Lemaire

Ecotoxicology, Field Biologist, Environmental pollution

Key words: Ecotoxicology, Physiology, Conservation, Environmental pollution, Tropical biology, Crocodylians.

My research focuses on environmental pollution, its bioaccumulation, and physiological effects on tropical ecosystems, by using crocodylians as bioindicator species. I am particularly interested in trace element contamination with a focus on mercury, which poses a major threat on tropical ecosystems. I study the bioaccumulation of heavy metals in crocodylians and their influence on trophic ecology and biometric measurements, and the repercussion of contamination on physiological and reproductive processes in individuals, species, and populations.

Since 2016 I am conducting research on the impact of mercury contamination related to legal and illegal gold mining activities, on the physiology and reproduction of the 4 caiman species in French Guiana, South America (the Smooth-fronted caiman, the Dwarf caiman, the Black caiman, and the Spectacled caiman).

Project website: https://caimanconservation.wixsite.com/caimanconservation

Selected publications:

Lemaire, J., Bustamante, P., Mangione, R., Marquis, O., Churlaud, C., Brault-Favrou, M., Parenteau, C., Brischoux, F. 2021. Lead, mercury, and selenium alter physiological functions in wild caimans (Caiman crocodilus). Environmental Pollution 286, 117549. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.117549
Lemaire, J., Brischoux, F., Marquis, O. Marquis, Mangione, R., Caut, S., Brault-Favrou, M., Churlaud, C., Bustamante, P. 2022. Relationships between stable isotopes and trace element concentrations in the crocodilian community of French Guiana. Science of the Total Environment 837, 155846. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155846
Lemaire, J., Brischoux, F., Marquis, O., Mangione, R., Bustamante, P. 2021. Variation of total mercury concentration in different tissues of three neotropical caimans: implication for minimally invasive biomonitoring. Archive of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 81(1), 15-24. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-021-00846-y
Lemaire, J., Bustamante, P., Marquis, O., Caut, S., Brischoux, F. 2021. Influence of sex, size and trophic level on blood Hg concentrations in Black caiman, Melanosuchus niger (Spix, 1825) in French Guiana. Chemosphere 262, 127819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.127819
Lemaire, J., Marquis, O., Bustamante, P., Mangione, R., Brischoux, F. 2021. I got it from my mother: Inter-nest variation of mercury concentration in neonate Smooth-fronted Caiman (Paleosuchus trigonatus) suggest maternal transfer and possible phenotypical effects. Environmental Research 194, 110494. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.110494