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Piranha Fright As Biting Fish Appear on Alicante Coastline
EuroWeekly News ^ | 05 September 2023 | Jo Pugh

Posted on 09/05/2023 4:15:01 PM PDT by nickcarraway

Victims of the biting fish reported seeing a black dot. Credit: Diego Delso/Wikipedia

Cases of people being bitten by fish which draw blood are being reported on Poniente beach in Benidorm, frightening swimmers who thought they were Piranhas.

They look for moles, warts and small wounds on the skin, especially in older people, whose skin tends to be thinner.

Piranha Fright As Biting Fish Appear on Alicante Coastline

The oblada melanura is the scientific name of this aggressive fish species, and they are more typically seen around the island of Tabarca, where tourists feed them in the port.

However, this year they are getting much closer to the coastline.

The attacked bathers agreed on a characteristic that easily identifies them: they all spoke of a black spot on their tail. “This is a fish used to being fed. There may be a high population density and they do not flee from people, hence they peck at the wounds”.

“As they are wounds and warts, they can cause pain”, explained a researcher from the Department of Marine Sciences, who also advises not bathing in the sea with shiny jewellery, because they can also lead to attacks from species such as pomfrets, golfer fish or bluefish.

When looking for the reason for these attacks, experts agree that the Mediterranean Sea is much warmer, which alters the behaviour of marine life. The water temperature is between 29 and 30 degrees, according to data from the Climatology Laboratory of the University of Alicante.

With the sea much warmer, the metabolism of fish increases, which need more food, Professor Alfonso Ramos, researcher at the Department of Marine Sciences and Applied Biology told Informacion.

The Institute of Coastal Ecology has been aware of this new phenomenon for several years, as it was reported to the Alicante rescue and first aid service in mid-August 2017. Gabriel Soler, scientific director, then highlighted that the increase in sea temperature affects marine species, “some are more tolerant and others have less capacity to adapt, but all are affected in their distribution and behaviour”.

Jorge Olcina, director of the Climatology Laboratory, recalled that in the last decade the Mediterranean has also suffered the invasion of numerous species of fish and algae typical of warmer seas – such as the Red Sea – that alter the ecosystem.

“It is proven that the Mediterranean has become a warmer sea according to reports from the European Commission and the United Nations Blue Plan,” he said. The European Environment Agency also warns that sea warming causes changes in the plankton that feed fish. The Institute of Coastal Ecology also indicated that these fish can get closer to the beach due to the trend of attracting them with food, in order to film them with underwater cameras.


TOPICS: Local News; Outdoors; Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS:

1 posted on 09/05/2023 4:15:01 PM PDT by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

They better not kiss any women’s soccer players in Spain then they’re in big trouble.


2 posted on 09/05/2023 4:21:39 PM PDT by Nextrush (FREEDOM IS EVERBODY'S BUSINESS-REMEMBER PASTOR NIEMOLLER)
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To: nickcarraway

Maybe you become more appetizing to these fish after getting the vax.


3 posted on 09/05/2023 4:23:23 PM PDT by fruser1
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To: nickcarraway

Another thread about politicians?


4 posted on 09/05/2023 4:23:44 PM PDT by HereInTheHeartland (Have you seen Joe Biden's picture on a milk carton?)
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To: nickcarraway

Piranha in the Mediterranean? Seriously?


5 posted on 09/05/2023 4:43:48 PM PDT by moonhawk (Unleash the MAGAhideen!)
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To: Nextrush
“It is proven that the Mediterranean has become a warmer sea according to reports from the European Commission and the United Nations Blue Plan,”

Code for Climate Change..was there any doubt? Pretty soon that thing will be crawling out on land and attacking women, children, the poor, the gender confused and minorities.

6 posted on 09/05/2023 4:57:54 PM PDT by Bounced2X (Boomer - I survived childhood with no bike helmet.)
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To: nickcarraway

I have a mole on my back that has been regularly nibbled on by sunfish in a fresh water lake in NY. I took a Pacific Ocean swim a couple of months ago, and it was once again nibbled. Don’t stand still.


7 posted on 09/05/2023 5:05:11 PM PDT by Ge0ffrey
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To: Bounced2X

“Women and Minorities will be the most seriously impacted by Piranha”


8 posted on 09/05/2023 5:13:41 PM PDT by Nextrush (FREEDOM IS EVERBODY'S BUSINESS-REMEMBER PASTOR NIEMOLLER)
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To: moonhawk

That was my first thought too.

Hard to believe...


9 posted on 09/05/2023 5:54:53 PM PDT by Roman_War_Criminal (Jesus + Something = Nothing ; Jesus + Nothing = Everything )
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To: nickcarraway; Chode; SkyDancer; Salamander; Carriage Hill; Lockbox; MtnClimber; nascarnation; ...

Poniente beach in Benidorm ?Where?

Alicante Coastline ?Again Where?

island of Tabarca ?One more time, Where?

Mediterranean Sea !!! Finally, I know where that is !!!

I guess I’m not as well informed as I thought I was...

But better than the kids coming out of the public skruulz these days.


10 posted on 09/05/2023 5:56:23 PM PDT by mabarker1 ( (Congress- the opposite of PROGRESS!!! A fraud, a hypocrite, a liar. I'm a member of Congress!!!)
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To: nickcarraway

Why can’t we get these for the Rio Grande?


11 posted on 09/05/2023 5:59:36 PM PDT by Joe 6-pack
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To: Ge0ffrey

Maybe the fish thought you meant mole sauce.

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/223261/authentic-mole-sauce/


12 posted on 09/05/2023 6:04:45 PM PDT by Redcitizen
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To: Nextrush
“Women and Minorities will be the most seriously impacted by Piranha”

That's right, and this bad boy can do some serious impacting.


13 posted on 09/05/2023 6:12:14 PM PDT by Bounced2X (Boomer - I survived childhood with no bike helmet.)
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To: Ge0ffrey

Maybe it’s good if they rat your mole?


14 posted on 09/05/2023 10:20:09 PM PDT by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway
"Take this quarter, go downtown, and have a rat gnaw that thing off your face!"

Regards,

15 posted on 09/06/2023 12:30:34 AM PDT by alexander_busek (Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.)
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