A voracious, venomous species of fish that has invaded the Mediterranean from the Red Sea may be about to meet its match as conservationists urge people to start eating them.

The exotic-looking lionfish has taken advantage of the widening of the Suez Canal and warming waters, caused by global climate change, to colonise the sea off Greece, Cyprus, Israel, Turkey and Lebanon.

An aggressive species, it preys on native fish and can reproduce at an alarming rate.

Over-fishing in the Mediterranean means that there is an acute lack of bigger fish which might have been expected to prey on the lionfish.

But working on the principle that “if you can’t beat’em, eat’em,” environmental groups in Greece and Cyprus are encouraging divers to catch them and sell or give them to restaurants.

There is a hitch – the lionfish’s dorsal fins are highly venomous, but experts insist that fishermen and chefs, equipped with gloves and knives, can be trained to safely remove them.

Once the fins are dispensed with, there is no danger in eating lionfish meat, which is succulent and white.