Ghost net facts for kids

Turtle caught in a ghost net

A mummified bird (Gannet) caught in a ghost net, next to a breeding one.

Ghost nets are fishing nets that have been lost, or that have been been left by fishermen. These nets then float around in the sea, or they end up attached to a rock or other structure. This poses a problem, because the nets continue working. Fish and other animals get caught, and then starve, or die of other causes. Since most nets use plastic, they take a long time to decay. In addition, the nets may release toxic substances while they decay.

Images for kids

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  Many marine species including turtles, sharks, whales, dolphins, dugongs become entangled in ghost nets. Most go unnoticed and unrecorded.

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  A glass float on the beach. Many of these floats for fish nets wash up on island beaches around the Pacific. The loss of the floats can leave fish nets drifting in the open ocean where they continue to entangle fish, birds, and marine mammals.

See also

In Spanish: Red fantasma para niños