Fish and Sea Animals of Greece

Fish in Greece
Sperm Whales and Dolphins in Crete
Dolphins and Whales in Greece
Dolphins of the Ionian Sea
Gizani fish
Fish farming in Greece

Fish in Greece

A complete list of fish that live close to shore in Greece. The list includes a photo of each fish, its scientific and common name. The photos have been offered by top ichthyologists from various countries.

Sperm Whales and Dolphins in Crete

The presence of sperm whales in Southern Crete is related to the very steep underwater cliffs that exist near the coastline. At these depths, deep-living squids on which sperm whales feed, are abundant. Research has shown that Southern Crete is the only known area in the world where social groups (i.e. females and their offspring) and solitary males co-exist all year round. The most plausible explanation for this unique phenomenon is that living conditions in this area are ideal for sperm whales.

Dolphins and whales in Greece

Dolphins in a minoan fresco in Santorini Greece Whales, dolphins and porpoises are known as Cetaceans and they have always lived in the seas of Greece.These marine mammals have been a part of Greek civilisation for over three and a half thousand years and the science of cetology was indeed founded by the ancient Greeks. The first scientific report on dolphins and whales is Historia Animalium written by Aristotle, and dates back to 350 BCE.. Images of whales and dolphins appear on many ancient wall paintings, pottery, coins, jewellery etc. It is mos possible to encounter dolphins and whales during a sailing trip in Greece and the following webpage describes the four most commonly sighted dolphins, as well as the four most commonly sighted whales in Greece.

Dolphins were abundant in the Mediterranean until 19th century, but since then their population is constantly declining. Watch a video from Italy explaining why dolphins are threatened with extinction today.

Dolphins of the Ionian Sea

dolphins of the ionian sea greece Follow Greece’s bottlenose dolphins in the Ionian sea to help scientists understand and protect them. Greece’s highest concentration of bottlenose dolphins lives in the turbid, productive water of the Amvrakikos Gulf, where they face increasing environmental pressure from fishing and pollution. Scientists who have been monitoring these dolphins believe that there are between 120 and 140 dolphins living in the area, and they have identified 107 individuals since 2001. During the expedition you will assist researchers conduct daily surveys on the Amvrakikos Gulf from a small research vessel, scanning the Gulf’s rich feeding grounds for dolphin dorsal fins. When your team spots dolphins you will follow them and record information.

Gizani fish struggles to survive in Rhodes

Gizani fish Ladigesocypris ghigii (Pisces, Cyprinidae), commonly called gizani , is a small freshwater fish, endemic to the Greek island of Rhodes. It owes both its common and scientific name to the Italian professor Alessandro Ghigi, who first discovered it on Rhodes at the beginning of the 20th century.

Gizani is a Lilliputian champion of survival, since it manages to live in the extremely unstable environment of the streams of Rhodes, which may flood during winter, but they dry up for most of their length during the dry season. Gizani is one of the most endangered freshwater fish of Europe, since one of its populations has recently become extinct (at lake Nani), and most of the remaining populations exhibit persistent declining tendencies.

Fish farming in Greece

fish farming in greece Fish farming has emerged as one of the fastest growing Greek industries, establishing Greece as a world leader in the cultivation of Mediterranean fish. In the space of 15 years fish farming in the country has expanded to account for around 60% of the European Union’s production of sea bass and sea bream, the two most popular Mediterranean varieties. Greek fish farmers produce more than 60,000 tons, three-quarters of which will be exported to Europe. Italy is Greece’s biggest customer, importing about 60% of Greek-farmed fish, but demand is growing from other countries such as Germany, France, Britain and Spain.

The success of the industry is due in part to the mild climate and clean seas of Greece, as well as around 3,000 islands and 15,000km of coastline offering ideal locations for fish farming operations.