The thirty-strong crew, made up of volunteers from fifteen nations, worked 24 hours a day to retrieve the illegal gillnet, which measured a total of 25 kilometres in length.

Over 200 targeted Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish were found dead in the gillnet, the largest approximately 1.6 meters long. Scientists on board the Sam Simon confirmed that a number of the dead toothfish were females of a reproductive age, and were carrying eggs.

Non-target species including rays, jellyfish, crabs and a staggering number of grenadiers were also found dead after being caught in illegal fishing gear. A majority of the crabs caught in the net were still alive, and were able to be released back into the Southern Ocean.

Captain of the Sam Simon, Sid Chakravarty, said, “With the confiscation of the illegally laid gillnet set combined with the pursuit of the Thunder by the Bob Barker, Operation Icefish has achieved what it had set out to do in less than a month from when it was kicked-off. The shadowlands of Antarctica, used by this wasteful and destructive industry, are being cleared of their illegal vessels, and the marine life of this pristine ecosystem is being given the protection they deserve.”