Malta worried about the spread of neurotoxin-producing fish in the Mediterranean

Egypt has not accepted the offer of technical assistance from the European Commission to address the spread of the silver-cheeked toadfish in the Mediterranean, Malta Independent says. The fish, which is potentially deadly if consumed, is believed to have entered the Mediterranean from the Red Sea through the Suez Canal. The Maltese paper is concerned because the tetrodotoxin-producing fish “may be consumed if caught by amateur fishermen.” The European Parliament’s Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella said: “the Commission is in regular contact with the Egyptian authorities in the framework of the EU-Egypt dialogue governed by the EU-Egypt Association Agreement and has raised its concerns regarding the potential for Lessepsian migration of invasive alien species with them on several occasions.”