Spurred by the sponge’s plight, Mehrotra recently led a study that assessed the scale of the impacts of discarded or “ghost” fishing gear on Thailand’s marine species.

Gill nets, fishing pots and traps are most likely to “ghost fish,” while long-lines are more likely to ensnare other marine organisms and trawls most likely to damage sub-sea habitats.

This is what known as ‘ghost fishing’ which involves the swimming nets catching fish and diminishing some species. Others die even as the nets destroy breeding habitats for fish when the nets ...

Photograph by National Geographic Wilson runs Ghost Fishing New Zealand (GFNZ), a Wellington based volunteer organization that’s dedicated to removing ghost gear and other debris from coastal ...

Fishing nets and other “ghost gear” left in the oceans have long been killing marine life. The university research team, in a report published in October, said discarded tires are also ...

A so-called ghost net has been found washed up along Western Australia's southern coast. The dumped or lost fishing nets are generally found off Australia's northern coast and pose a risk to ...