'I lost my battle': Sea warming is killing fishing in Albania

AFP has dedicated a report to the fish kills that are happening due to sea warming. Testimonies from fishermen show how aquatic life is already disappearing, putting fishermen's incomes in difficulty.

Albanians like him have lived from the sea for generations, but Kocaj fears his way of life in the Gulf of Vlora is coming to an end, with warming waters reducing catches every year.

"I lost my battle with the sea. I loved it, but it betrayed me," the father of four told AFP.

As Europe suffers from the first wave of summer heat, sea temperatures are also rising.

By the end of June, the sea off the Albanian coast had already reached 25.5 degrees Celsius (77.9 degrees Fahrenheit) - 1.5 degrees higher than it was at this time last year.

"My luck left me a long time ago ," said Kocaj, despondent at his meager catch. "Look at my almost empty nets ," sighed the 65-year-old, as he prepared to return to port.

A few years ago, he was still able to provide for his family. But now, he said, it's ruined.

"Rising temperatures have been a fatal blow to the fish, and to us too ," he added, trying to hide tears.

Fish are 'almost extinct'

In Vlora, Kocaj estimates that fish populations have declined by 70 percent.

The situation is no better outside the bay, where even the largest fishing vessels in deeper waters are facing difficulties and the forecasts are not optimistic.

Reshat Xhelilaj, head of the fisheries and aquaculture sector in Vlora, told AFP that she expects a hotter summer than 2024, which saw a deep-sea temperature of up to 30.5 C.

Walking to the pier, dragging a small bucket half-filled with fish, Kocaj said that about five years ago he could have returned with up to 10 kilograms of cod a day.

Back then, he and his brother would fish together. And even with much smaller nets, they brought home enough fish to support both their families.

Now he is alone, and despite casting a kilometer of net and spending hours at sea, he is lucky to return with two kilograms of everything.

"They're almost gone," he said of his once abundant catch.

'Devastating'

"Climate change is a major factor in the decline of fish populations," said Nexhip Hysolokaj, a biology researcher at Polis University in Tirana.

Rising temperatures make it difficult for many marine organisms, especially those adapted to cooler waters, to reproduce and grow.

At least a dozen species of fish, usually found in the Indian and Pacific oceans, are now replacing local species that are essential to the food chain, such as the endangered sardine, he said.

The proof lies in the capture of Kocaj, a highly venomous lionfish, which is common in the Caribbean.

"Luckily for him and me, he ended up in my nets," said the fisherman.

Spiny fish is edible if cleaned and prepared properly, and campaigns are underway to help fishermen turn this tropical invader into a profitable alternative.

"Climate change has had devastating effects ," warned Captain Baci Dyrmishi, head of the Gulf's marine fishing association. "Temperatures are exceeding predictions and the waters are overheating."

Baci said that, as the fish catch decreases, the number of those living in the sea is also decreasing and many are leaving the idyllic coastal town to make a living elsewhere.

At Radhima's pier, once home to over a dozen ships, only three or four now anchor.