Giant ghost net ensnares marine life near protected Thai islands

Maritime researchers and volunteer divers are planning to remove a huge abandoned trawl net stretching across the channel between Kra Lek and Kra Klang islands off Nakhon Si Thammarat province.

According to officials from the Marine and Coastal Resources Research and Development Institute, the net, with a mesh size of 10 centimetres, stretches for about 500 metres across the seabed at a depth of around 10 metres and poses a serious threat to marine life.

More than 40 species of fish, crabs and turtles were found entangled in the net when divers and researchers from the institute, Prince of Songkla University, Kasetsart University, Ramkhamhaeng University, Burapha University and the Enlive Foundation conducted an underwater survey of the area from June 6 to 8.

Some of the trapped animals were still alive when they were discovered, while others had already perished, a diver said, adding that the abandoned trawl net is also smothering coral reefs.

The Kra islands, off Pak Phanang district in Nakhon Si Thammarat, were declared a protected zone about five years ago because of their healthy ecosystem and pristine coral reefs, which provide an ideal habitat for juvenile marine species.