Ghost Lobster Traps are drowning Lobsters and crabs

Beneath the cold ocean waters off the coast of Maine in the US, lie hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of old and abandoned wire lobster traps or "ghost traps."

These traps have been lost overboard or broken free from their buoys in storms. The tragedy is that many of the discarded traps continue to catch and kill lobsters.

Marine biologists say lost and abandoned lobster, crab and other fish traps plague coastal waters around the globe, putting pressure on a number of already-stressed fish populations.

The commercial perspective in the U.S. is that in thier waters alone, millions of dollars' worth of marketable seafood is lost each year. More worrying from a global, ecological perspective is that millions of sea creatures are being trapped, starved and drowned by these devices. All this is hidden or unseen, unless the traps are washed up on shore or dredged up in fishermens' nets.

Clean up the sea bed
Lobster fishermen this winter will grapple up doscarded traps and fishing gear from selected spots. This is the first large-scale study of ghost traps along the Maine coast, the area of the U.S. where many of the country's lobsters are caught. Nationwide, other studies are focusing on lost traps off the Pacific, Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts.

"It would be very interesting if we could drain the ocean and look at what's down there," said Holly Bamford, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Marine Debris Program. "We might be surprised." I think we are more likely to be horrified and disgusted, given that the oceans have been a dumping ground for humanity's waste for centuries.

Recovered traps
The extent of Maine's ghost-trap problem isn't fully known, but lobster fishermen say they sometimes recover traps that contain skinny, starving lobsters or shells from lobsters that have starved and withered away to nothing or been eaten (canibalised) by other trapped and starving lobsters.

Most lobstermen feel it'll get worse with a new federal regulation requiring them to use a biodegradable type of rope on their gear. The rope, they say, is prone to breaking and will result in even more lost traps.

Greater impact on sea bed
Fishermen have been losing and discarding equipment for as long as they've plied the world's seas but the range and impact of that refuse has grown in the past 50 years as fishing has increased, especially with more durable, non-biodegradable equipment.

The ability of lost lobster traps to continue fishing diminishes as the bait — herring, mackerel or other oily fish — dissipates. Scientists believe the traps continue catching lobsters, attracting creatures in search of shelter.

Emergency exits
Although the traps are required to have escape vents that break free over time, not all vents break free as intended. There is no way of knowing how attentive fishermen are to this feature and how well it is maintained.

Ghost Fishing studies
"Ghost fishing" studies are underway or recently completed along all U.S. coasts. They include looks at Dungeness crab traps in Alaska, Washington, Oregon and California; blue crab and sea bass traps off North Carolina; blue crab traps in the Chesapeake Bay and the Gulf of Mexico; spiny lobster traps in Florida; and fish traps in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Other studies have looked at the impact of lost fishing nets found in Puget Sound in Washington and off the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, where more than 600 tons of nets were collected. More work has to be done to address this issue to further reduce the suffering of sea creatures and the deadly impact that humanity is having on the oceans.