They dubbed it the “monster net.”

The abandoned fishing net weighed an estimated 11.5 tons and had become a legend among the experts working in Hawaii’s Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, a World Heritage site and one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world.

A year passed between the first sighting of this monster by experts with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and other agencies, and when they finally located again and hauled it up. In that time, the net had broken free of a GPS tracking device, killed or injured multiple large marine animals and devastated giant swaths of coral. (See 13 pictures that capture the wonder of oceans.)

“From the surface the net looked