Note from Scott.

I was walking around the deck near the fish cleaning stand several weeks ago and pulled up an old rope and found it tied to an abandoned crab trap.  The frustration was that I found a small flounder trapped inside.  See the pic.  This prompted me to write this little piece to hopefully make others aware of the negative effects of "ghost fishing".  Had I not pulled the trap up the flounder would likely have starved as it was trapped in the abandoned crab trap and had no way to get out or get food.  As an avid outdoorsman I have an appreciation for preserving wildlife.  I take what my family and I can eat and I exercise conservation to help ensure there is a thriving wildlife for many generations to come.  I just wanted to make people aware of the negative effects on wildlife when traps and nets are abandoned.  they can continue to catch and kill for months or even years.  Simply put, it results in senseless waste of wildlife.  Below is a description I found on the internet to maybe explain it better than I can.

 

Ghost Fishing - Derelict fishing gear, sometimes referred to as “ghost gear” or “ghost nets” is any discarded, lost, or abandoned, fishing gear in the environment. This gear continues to fish and trap animals, entangle and potentially kill marine life, smother habitat, and act as a hazard to navigation. Derelict fishing gear, such as nets or traps and pots, is one of the main types of debris impacting the marine environment today.