Over 640,000 tonnes of fishing gear are abandoned or lost at sea every year. The abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear threatens millions of marine animals. Fish and invertebrates become entangled, die and become bait for larger marine animals – such as whales, dolphins, sharks, sea turtles, seals, seabirds and other animals, which, in turn, can themselves become entangled in the nets as they feed, become ensnared themselves and then die in agony. OceanCare supports expert organisations that free marine animals from ghost nets and plastic waste and, as a member of the Global Ghost Gear Initiative, works toward the reduction of ghost nets.