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Shocking photos show marine life making homes out of litter – including a lobster living in a traffic cone and sea anemone growing on a can of Irn Bru.
Chemistry teacher Ross McLaren, 31, started documenting detritus while diving around estuaries in Scotland.
He thinks Scotland is one of the best places in the world for diving, but said litter has skyrocketed since lockdown.
Ross started diving in September 2016 and was amazed by starfish, anemones, lobsters and squid.
But one time he saw a beautiful jellyfish – only to realize it was a Bag For Life.
Shocking photos show marine life making homes out of litter – including a lobster living in a traffic cone and sea anemone growing on a can of Irn Bru
Earlier this month, a lobster was found hiding in a traffic cone while diving near Fairlie Quay, Largs, North Ayrshire
He said the hobby can be depressing at times due to the amount of waste, and he has to weigh the benefits of removing litter if a marine animal lives in it.
Father of a Ross, from Kilwinning, Ayrshire, said: ‘Most of the rubbish in my car comes from diving, every six months I empty it out.
“Some of the things I’ve seen underwater are decades old – a Nintendo controller and cans of Tennent” with the pin-up girls on them.
‘I accidentally fell in love with diving and it’s good to show people what happens.
‘Sea animals make their homes in litter. People won’t care if they can’t see it.
‘One day in Greenock I saw what I thought was a huge jellyfish, but it was actually a Bag For Life.
‘You can understand why a whale or a porpoise thinks a plastic bag is a jellyfish. I was also completely unaware. It’s really quite discouraging.
‘The Irn Bru can shock a lot of people. There’s a bottle that looks like Budweiser or Buckfast, and a wheel rim, and the marine life has made a home there.”
Other discoveries include an old-fashioned kettle in Ballachulish, Highlands, and a flask with a glove on it.
Dad of a Ross, from Kilwinning, Ayrshire, said: ‘Most of the rubbish in my car is from diving, every six months I empty it out’
Other discoveries include an old-fashioned kettle in Ballachulish, Highlands, and a flask with a glove on it
Ross added: ‘I think it’s gotten worse since the lockdown. There is a general increase in the amount of litter in the water. ‘People don’t realize the impact it has. I tend to do a lot of diving around the estuaries, around Loch Lomond and Loch Fyne’
“I’m not a marine biologist or an eco-warrior,” said Ross, adding, “It’s easy to stop litter”
Ross added: ‘I think it’s gotten worse since the lockdown. There is a general increase in the amount of litter in the water.
‘People don’t realize the impact it has. I tend to do a lot of diving around the estuaries, around Loch Lomond and Loch Fyne.’
A disturbing 2019 photo showed a lobster with plastic tied around its claws, suggesting it had been caught and lobbed back into the water.
Earlier this month, a lobster was also found hiding in a traffic cone when diving near Fairlie Quay, Largs, North Ayrshire.
Ross added: ‘I was really quite surprised to see it – visibility isn’t the best at times and it wasn’t the easiest shot to get.
‘Sea life uses litter as a habitat. On this occasion I thought it best to leave it as it looked as if the lobster had settled there.
“On some of my dives I’ve seen something like a can of Irn Bru and it’s grown in bits and pieces and that’s where it becomes an ethical issue.
‘The incredible range of colors you can see is amazing – most people think that Scottish marine life is dull and gray on the surface, but full of color underneath.
“I’m not a marine biologist or an eco-warrior,” he said, adding, “Stopping litter is easy.”