Ghost fishing capacity of lost experimental gillnets: a preliminary study from Indian waters.

Abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear contributes considerably to global marine debris. These lost gears, mostly made of non-biodegradable synthetic materials, persist in the marine environment for longer periods of time and pose a great threat to marine life by entangling and killing target fishes and other non-target species such as turtles, birds, and mammals, a phenomenon known as ghost fishing. Other environmental impacts include physical impacts on aquatic habitats, transfer of microplastics into food web, and interference with fishing.