We are still the sea’s worse enemy

Higher than normal sea temperatures are expected to favour an influx of jellyfish and other invading species in the Mediterranean this summer.

According to experts, the water is already hitting 30 degrees centigrade, five more than the average temperature during the hottest months of the year.

"This is not a normal occurrence," declared one specialist from Valencia university with regards to the progressive warming up of the sea, adding that ‘it is not an isolated incident, and is starting to take place more continuously'.

The changes in marine conditions bring dangerous exotic species to the area, including the  Portuguese man-of-war jellyfish - a potentially fatal species usually restricted to Brazil – which has already been seen off the coast of Cartagena. Other species include  the predatory ‘zebra mussel' along with certain types of seaweed discovered in various areas recently.  

According to experts, "the Mediterranean is ill".   They point to over-fishing, pollution and the destruction of choral reefs due to excessive building in coastal areas as the main causes.

However, the damage sustained by the sea is ‘superficial' as it only affects the surface, and scientists have likened it to a dog that has parasites;   the invaders can cause a certain degree of trouble ‘but the dog will not die from it'.

They added that the most dangerous species for the Mediterranean are still  ‘cans that take 500 years to disappear, plastic bags and silver foil'.