Cypriot fishermen battle invasive lionfish and turn them into a tavern
delicacy
[December 27, 2025] By
MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS
LARNACA, Cyprus (AP) — Photis Gaitanos’ rough fingers adroitly untangle
the venomous spikes of a lionfish from a net, throwing the
exotic-looking creature into an ice-filled rubber bin along with other
fish from the day’s catch.
Unlike a few years ago when he would have mostly caught local staples as
sea bream, red mullet or bass, the veteran fisherman now hunts for the
invasive species that made its way from the Red Sea to the warming
waters of the Mediterranean,
Lionfish, with their red and orange-hued stripes and antennae-like barbs
that menacingly ward off enemies, threaten to decimate indigenous fish
stocks, wreaking havoc on the livelihoods of the roughly 150
professional fishermen in Cyprus.
The prickly fish has even made its way as far north as the Ionian Sea,
where Italian authorities have asked the public to photograph and report
sightings.
The East Mediterranean has also seen another invasive Red Sea fish in
the last decade: the silver-cheeked toadfish. Known as an eating machine
whose powerful jaws cut through fishing nets, decimating fishermen’s
catch, it has no natural predators off Cyprus, allowing its population
to explode.
That toadfish also produces a lethal toxin, making it inedible.
Warmer waters are the culprit
Gaitanos, the 60-year-old fisherman, has fished for years in an area a
few kilometers off the coastal town of Larnaca, once famous for its
fishing bounty. Now, he says, it’s been more than two years since he’s
caught a red mullet, a consumer favorite.
“I have been practicing this profession for 40 years. Our income,
especially since these two foreign species appeared, has become worse
every year. It is now a major problem (affecting) the future of
fishing," he said. "How can it be dealt with?”
Europe’s General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean says with
the sea warming some 20% faster than the global average, the presence of
invasive species “is progressively increasing in the western basin.”
Models show that warmer seas as a result of climate change could see
lionfish swarm the entire Mediterranean by the century’s end. Warmer
waters and an expanded Suez Canal “have opened the floodgates” to
Indo-Pacific species in general, according to Cyprus’ Fisheries
Department.
The European Union’s Fisheries Commissioner Costas Kadis, a Cypriot
himself, told The Associated Press that more frequent and intense
extreme weather, often linked to climate change, could make the
Mediterranean more hospitable to invasive species.
And that’s taking a heavy toll on Europe’s fishing industry as
fishermen’s catches diminish while their costs shoot up as a result of
repairs to fishing gear damaged by the powerful intruders.
“The native marine biodiversity of a specific region, as in the case of
Cyprus, faces heightened competition and pressure, with implications for
local ecosystems and industries dependent on them,” said Kadis.
Fishermen cry for help
Gaitanos, who inherited his father’s boat in 1986, is not sure the
fishermen’s grievances are being handled in a way that can stave off the
profession’s decline.
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A lionfish is seen on a fishing boat off the coast of Larnaca,
Cyprus, in the eastern Mediterranean, early Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025.
(AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
 “We want to show the European Union
that there’s a big problem with the quantity of the catch as well as
the kind of fish caught, affected by the arrival of these invasive
species and by climate change," he said.
Some EU-funded compensation programs have been
enacted to help fishermen. The latest, enforced last year, pays
fishermen about 4.73 euros ($5.5) per kilogram (2.2 pounds) to catch
toadfish to control their number. The toadfish are then sent to
incinerators.
Another project, RELIONMED, which began in 2017, recruits some 100
scuba divers to cull lionfish around wrecks, reefs and marine
protected areas. The Cyprus Fisheries Department says surveys show
that frequent culls could buy time for native species to recover,
but it’s not a permanent fix.
Some try eating the problem
What local fishermen are hoping will catch on with the fish-loving
public is a new campaign to serve lionfish as a delicacy after its
poisonous spines are carefully removed.
Kadis, the EU Fisheries commissioner, said a social media campaign
that began in 2021, #TasteTheOcean, had top European chefs and
influencers plugging invasive species as a tasty alternative to the
more commonly consumed fish. Renowned Cypriot chef Stavris Georgiou
worked up a lionfish recipe of his own.
For most Cypriots, local taverns with their rich meze menus that
feature numerous plates different fish is the way to go. Although
eating lionfish has been slow to catch on, many tavernas and fish
restaurants have started to introduce it as part of their menu.
The bonus is that lionfish is now priced competitively compared to
more popular fish like sea bass. At the Larnaca harbor fish market,
lionfish cost less than half as much as more popular fish like sea
bass.
“By incorporating invasive species such as lionfish into our diet,
we can turn this challenge into an opportunity for the fisheries
sector and at the same time help limit the environmental threat
caused by these species,” Kadis said
Stephanos Mentonis, who runs a popular fish tavern in Larnaca, has
included lionfish on his meze menu as a way to introduce the fish to
a wider number of patrons.
Mentonis, 54, says most of his customers aren’t familiar with
lionfish. But its meat is fluffy and tender, and he says it can hold
up against perennial tavern favorites like sea bream.
“When they try it, it’s not any less tasty than any other fish," he
said.
___
Associated Press writer Colleen Barry in Milan contributed to this
report.
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