Greece's Ministry of Rural Development is drawing up a plan to pay professional fishermen to catch and remove the silver...

Greece's Ministry of Rural Development is drawing up a plan to pay professional fishermen to catch and remove the silver-cheeked toadfish, one of the Mediterranean's most dangerous invasive species. The pilot program would offer financial incentives to coastal fishermen who target the species directly, with funding set to come from the EU's Fisheries, Aquaculture and Sea program. The proposal has already been sent to the European Commission for negotiation and approval. The silver-cheeked toadfish, known in Greek as lagokephalos, first appeared in Greek waters in 2005 and has since spread aggressively across the Aegean, the Dodecanese, and Crete. It entered the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal from its native range in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans, a process scientists call Lessepsian migration. Rising sea temperatures, a lack of natural predators, and its high reproductive capacity have all accelerated its spread. The fish causes serious damage on two fronts. It destroys fishing nets, lines, and longlines with its powerful teeth, and it eats fish already caught in gear, cutting into fishermen's income directly. Secretary General for Rural Development Spyros Protopalstis said this is not just a fishing problem, it affects livelihoods, marine biodiversity, and public health all at once. The public health risk is severe. The toadfish contains tetrodotoxin, a potent neurotoxin that is not destroyed by cooking or freezing. Its consumption is strictly banned. Protopalstis was direct on this point, saying the message must be clear: the fish is not eaten, not cleaned, not cooked, and never enters the market. Greece is looking at Cyprus as a model, where a controlled fishing and collection program has already been implemented with some success. Officials acknowledge that targeted removal alone will not eliminate the species, but can reduce the pressure it puts on marine ecosystems and give struggling fishermen some relief. Any fish collected under the pilot program will require special handling, storage, transport, and destruction procedures due to its toxicity. #Greece #Fishing #MarineEnvironment