Diver Captures Shocking Footage Of Animals Swimming In A Sea Of Trash

This is heartbreaking πŸ’”

Manta Point, a popular diving spot off the coast of Bali, Indonesia, is named for the numerous manta rays that frequent the spot. But on a recent expedition there, diver Rich Horner found it was a sea of garbage with just a few unfortunate animals to be seen. 

"The ocean currents brought us in a lovely gift of a slick of jellyfish, plankton, leaves, branches, fronds, sticks, etc... Oh, and some plastic," Horner wrote in post online. "Some plastic bags, plastic bottles, plastic cups, plastic sheets, plastic buckets, plastic sachets, plastic straws, plastic baskets, plastic bags, more plastic bags, plastic, plastic, so much plastic!"

Words pale in comparison to seeing all that floating trash on video β€” a chilling reminder of what pollution looks like for creatures who call the ocean home.

Horner notes that, by the next day, currents had carried the drifting mass of litter out of the area, but that should bring little comfort to anyone: "The plastic is continuing on its journey, off into the Indian Ocean, to slowly break up into smaller and smaller pieces, into microplastics. But not going away."

This isn't the first time, of course, that the stark reality of ocean pollution has been displayed so clearly β€” giving voice, through images, to countless animals who have no choice but to live among our garbage.

To learn more about this issue, and find out how you can be part of International Coastal Cleanup day, follow Ocean Conservancy online.