Discarded line hurting wildlife

It’s a sad but true fact that fishing lines catch far more than just fish.

As an angler, it shames me at times to arrive on location only to be confronted by the mess left behind by other ‘fishos’. 

Plastic bags, bait containers, discarded lure packets, empty cans and bottles and tangles of fishing line.

Every year many animals fall foul of discarded fishing line and the numbers continue to grow as angling becomes more popular.

In the past few years I have rescued several different varieties of birds including a pelican that had its beak tied shut in a tangle of hooks and line. 

For more on this story, check out Monday’s Guardian (March 6).