In a losing fight against a decade-long invasive species problem, Cyprus is going to try a new approach.
The country's Department of Fisheries and Marine Research announced in early August that it was bumping pay to anglers who catch the silver-cheeked toadfish, the Cyprus Mail reported. The new rate of €4.47 ($4.95) per kilogram is up from €3 ($3.32), a 49% increase.
The pufferfish, from the Indo-Pacific, has been in the Mediterranean Sea for about 30 years but hadn't proved problematic until the last 15, DFMR director Yiannos Kyriakou told the outlet.
It is a voracious eater, chomping down with sharp teeth, and even cuts into fishing nets and goes after the fish within. This causes environmental and economic issues, depleting fish and mollusk populations, according to the European Commission.
"The fish destroys both nets and catch," Panicos Peratikos, the head of a professional fishers association, told the Mail.
Peratikos noted the previous stipend was not profitable but that it was still necessary for anglers to catch the toadfish, a type of pufferfish, to protect their livelihood, saying: "We used to devote two to three months to hunting the fish during its spawning season, and the costs of fuel were very high."
Because the fish is poisonous to humans, this is the only method that has been deemed acceptable to control the population, according to the Mail. The toadfish produces tetrodotoxin, which can cause nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache, abdominal pain, progressive muscle paralysis, and even death.
That means it can't be consumed like other invasive species, including lionfish, channa, and copi. The outlet noted that "almost all countries bordering the Mediterranean" make it illegal for citizens to even catch the toadfish, as handling is so dangerous that only trained professional fishers are allowed to participate in the culling.
"Incidents of contact with bathers resulting in adverse effects have also been recorded, resulting in fears that unchecked proliferation could harm tourism in the long run," the Mail stated.
The creature, which can grow to 110 centimeters (over 3 feet, 7 inches), arrived via the Suez Canal. It has no natural predators in the Mediterranean and has escaped to the Black Sea as well, traveling through the Turkish Straits and other bodies of water — all of which are at risk.
This year, Cypriots have caught 38 tonnes (almost 42 tons) of the toadfish — including 24 tonnes (around 26 tons) around Famagusta in July alone. The animals are then destroyed at a facility in Kofinou.
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