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"One of the baddest fish in the world" is currently attacking bathers in the Mediterranean

2022-08-15T03:11:18.907Z


Biting fish attacks bathers in southern France - "have harpoon with you!" Created: 08/15/2022 04:54 By: Jason Blaschke Up to mischief in French waters and bites bathers: the gray triggerfish. © Valentyna Chukhlyebova/Panthermedia/IMAGO On beaches in southern France, swimmers are currently complaining about fish bites – local media reports that more than 40 bathers were attacked in one day alon


Biting fish attacks bathers in southern France - "have harpoon with you!"

Created: 08/15/2022 04:54

By: Jason Blaschke

Up to mischief in French waters and bites bathers: the gray triggerfish.

© Valentyna Chukhlyebova/Panthermedia/IMAGO

On beaches in southern France, swimmers are currently complaining about fish bites – local media reports that more than 40 bathers were attacked in one day alone.

Côte d'Azur - puffer fish, box jellyfish, frogs - the number of dangerous animal species that you can encounter on holiday is not small.

Although the 10 most poisonous animals in the world live primarily in exotic regions such as Australia or Asia, climate change is also favoring their spread in southern European countries.

In the Mediterranean, for example, a species of puffer fish has already been sighted that is extremely dangerous for humans because:

Bathers in southern France bitten by triggerfish - over 40 cases

According to reports from

echo24.de

, the sharp teeth of the hare's head puffer fish can even bite through metal. In addition, like all puffer fish species, the fish is extremely poisonous and should therefore not be eaten.

The puffer fish thus make it into the ranking of the 10 most dangerous animals living in Germany and Europe.

But one animal that is causing problems in the Mediterranean is not included in the list: the triggerfish, which likes to bite.

According to reports from

Travelbook

, on Monday (8 August 2022) alone, more than 40 bathers on the beach at Hendaye near the Spanish border in southern France were bitten by triggerfish.

Triggerfish attacks have also occurred near Cannes on the Côte d'Azur.

Here a man is said to have been attacked in water only 50 centimeters deep, and reports of a case in the Bay of Saint-Tropez are also known.

Gray triggerfish (Balistes capriscus)

Like all triggerfish species, the gray triggerfish (Balistes capriscus), which are 30 to 45 centimeters long, are related to the puffer fish – but unlike their counterparts in exotic waters, they also live in the Mediterranean.

The fish feed primarily on mussels, snails and various crustaceans and are themselves considered tasty food fish when properly prepared.

The triggerfish has 14 teeth in the upper and eight in the lower jaw, making a total of 22 teeth.

He uses these to crack open shells, crabs or sea urchins.

Although the bites are painful for humans, they are usually harmless.

As after all animal bites, the area should be well disinfected and, if necessary, covered with bandages.

If physical discomfort occurs after a bite, a doctor should be consulted.

In the video "FIERCE than piranhas" on the YouTube channel "Zoo Zajac", users can see for themselves the enormous bite force of the fish, which is "equipped with almost human teeth".

One commentator even describes the animal there as "one of the baddest fish in the world".

Expert warns, triggerfish biting aggressive in reproductive phase

It is unclear why there are more attacks on people right now.

The newspaper

Le Parisien

reports that the fish, which have a total of 22 teeth, are increasingly penetrating shallow waters to search for food due to climate change and as a result of acute water warming - and encounter many bathers during the holiday season.

Sea fish expert Benjamin Lafon told the newspaper that the fish, which are not shy anyway, are particularly aggressive during their reproduction phase in summer.

On Facebook, some users can't believe that there are fish that like to bite in the south of France, which have so far only been sighted in Portugal and Spain.

"They don't have enough food anymore," concludes one user.

Another user takes the news about the triggerfish attacks in the Mediterranean with humor: "We have a harpoon with us, they are eaten before they bite."

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Triggerfish almost extinct, rising temperatures lure it back

The bites of the gray triggerfish can be painful but are mostly harmless to humans, Lafon said.

His colleague, marine researcher Samuel Somot from the National Meteorological Research Institute (CNRM), told the

Parisien

that the water on the French Mediterranean coast is currently up to 28 degrees, instead of the usual 21 to 22 degrees.

This favors the return of the fish, which is almost extinct on the French coasts.

However, the ever-increasing temperatures do not only affect the animals in the sea.

In Germany too, and especially in Baden-Württemberg, animals that originally come from exotic regions are becoming more and more common.

The "deadliest animal in the world" has arrived at Lake Constance.

And in Pforzheim and Karlsruhe, the poisonous Nosferatu spider was found, which can grow up to eight centimeters in size.

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2022-08-15

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