![\"Crowded](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-1495457652.jpg\")
\n\t\tExperts warn that Mediterranean countries must work together against a rising threat (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tExperts warn that Mediterranean countries must work together against a rising threat (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Warmer seas are bringing a little-known and potentially dangerous visitor closer to European beaches.<\/p>\n
In recent years, parts of Europe<\/a> have experienced episodes of pollution and health alerts\u00a0that have led to restrictions on access to the sea.<\/p>\n Now, as the water gets ever warmer and tourism<\/a> pressure mounts, concerns are growing over a specific strain of bacteria that is often described as \u2018flesh-eating\u2019.<\/p>\n \u2018[This bacteria] has always been present in coastal waters, it\u2019s not a new or exotic threat,\u2019 Arif Gasilov, partner at environmental consultancy Gasilov Group, tells Metro.<\/p>\n \u2018However, as warmer seas expand their range due to global warming, this also extends the season in which concentrations reach dangerous levels. <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tAsk Metro<\/p>\n Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about \u2013 powered by Metro and trusted publications.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tBest of Metro Deals\t\t\t<\/p>\n Get exclusive\u00a0discounts\u00a0with\u00a0Metro Deals<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 save on getaways and spa days.\u00a0Powered by Wowcher<\/p>\n Bannatyne Spa: Spa day for two with treatments, lunch & prosecco \u2014\u00a0save up to 57%\u00a0off.<\/p>\n Get deal now<\/a><\/p>\n Mystery Escape: Hotel stay with return flights from as low as \u00a392pp \u2014\u00a0save on worldwide holiday packages.<\/p>\n Get deal now<\/a><\/p>\n Beach Retreat (Lanzarote): 4* Lanzarote beach holiday with flights \u2014\u00a0save up to 58%.<\/p>\n Get deal now<\/a><\/p>\n \u2018This risk concentrates at river mouths, lagoons, places like that with warm water plus reduced salinity. These are also where people tend to swim.\u2019<\/p>\n The threat<\/p>\n Experts are particularly concerned about the Vibrio bacterium, a family of naturally occurring microorganisms found in warm, brackish coastal waters.<\/p>\n Most strains are harmless. But some \u2013 such as Vibrio vulnificus, the one described as \u2018flesh-eating\u2019 \u2013 can cause severe and, in rare cases, even fatal infections.<\/p>\n The risk is heightened\u00a0in people with open wounds or weakened immune systems.<\/p>\n In the worst scenarios, infection can trigger necrotising fasciitis, a condition where the tissue around a wound rapidly breaks down.<\/p>\n Bacteria can then enter the bloodstream, causing sepsis. In rare cases, some patients require amputation.<\/p>\n Why the Med? <\/p>\n The\u00a0European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has warned of an increased risk of infections this summer,\u00a0particularly during heatwaves and in shallow coastal waters. <\/p>\n And, with the Mediterranean warming around 20 percent faster than the global average<\/a>, conditions are only getting more suitable for the stuff to grow.<\/p>\n @10newsau<\/a> <\/p>\n As Europe swelters through a record heatwave, there is a new threat casting a shadow over tourist plans. Several beaches in Spain have already been closed over the seasonal risk of deadly flesh-eating bacteria known as Vibrio, which thrives in heat. 10\u2019s Late News explains. Click the link in bio for the full bulletin. <\/p>\n \u266c original sound \u2013 10 News<\/a> <\/p>\n This is because warmer water, especially where it is less salty, becomes a fertile breeding ground for harmful bacteria.<\/p>\n The Mediterranean\u2019s naturally higher salt level has historically suppressed Vibrio vulnificus, making the Baltic and North Sea coasts higher-risk areas for the most dangerous cases. <\/p>\n Now, however, scientists warn that as the Med warms and salt patterns shift, that could change.<\/p>\n \u2018The Mediterranean isn\u2019t a victim of climate change<\/a>, it\u2019s a preview of it,\u2019 Hatim Aznague, an analyst for Projects, Climate Action and Energy Resilience at the Union for the Mediterranean, tells Metro.<\/p>\n \u2018Mediterranean countries need to stop treating this as twenty-plus separate national problems.<\/p>\n \u2018We share one sea. A warming current or a bacterial bloom doesn\u2019t stop at a border, so the response can\u2019t either.\u2019<\/p>\n The Vibrio bacterium is not the only sign of an evolving marine environment.<\/p>\n In Greece, toxic fish with human-like teeth are running rife<\/a> just as tourist season gets into full swing.<\/p>\n The silver-cheeked toadfish is a torpedo-shaped species with prominent, razor sharp teeth.<\/p>\n As well as having a vicious bite, it contains a powerful neurotoxin called tetrodotoxin, which can cause heart and lung failure, making the fish unsuitable for human consumption.<\/p>\n Silver-cheeked toadfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus) usually inhabit the\u00a0Indian Ocean<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, the fish are believed to have travelled up the\u00a0Suez Canal\u00a0and into the Mediterranean, attracted by warming waters.<\/p>\n Fishermen in\u00a0Greece<\/a>\u00a0are now getting cash payouts to catch the fish migrating north into the Mediterranean Sea due to\u00a0climate change<\/a>.<\/p>\n What can be done?<\/p>\n The solution, according to Hatim, is cooperation.<\/p>\n \u2018We need a shared effort so that the countries with the fewest resources aren\u2019t left to cope alone,\u2019 he says. <\/p>\n He wants to see \u2018real investment\u2019 in early-warning and monitoring, so that coastal towns across the region get \u2018timely, honest information about water quality\u2019.<\/p>\n The most important part, he says, is for the same standard to be applied on every shore, \u2018not just the wealthier ones\u2019. <\/p>\n Hatim argues that sticking a plaster on the problem is not enough. <\/p>\n The root causes must be tackled together, \u2018not only the warming, but the land-based pollution \u2013 the sewage and nutrient run-off\u2019 \u2013 that feeds the bacteria in the first place.<\/p>\n For scientists and European policymakers, the Vibrio bacterium is a canary in the coalmine of just how rapidly our world if changing.<\/p>\n As Hatim puts it, \u2018bacteria are not the story; they are the messengers. The story is a sea thrown out of balance by heat and pollution.\u2019<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow
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