Check out these shocking images of a polar bear trapped in an old, abandoned fishing net out in the Arctic Sea.

Photographer Chuck Wood, from New Jersey, USA, was on a small exploration ship in the north of Svalbard when he spotted a female polar bear in the pack ice.

Slowly approaching, the 65-year-old noticed the remains of a dead seal which she had killed for dinner. Jumping from floe to floe, and splashing around in the water, the bear poked its head up above the water, but soon it takes a drastic turn when she gets trapped in “ghost gear”, which was captured through photographs.

The poor white bear got herself caught inside abandoned fishing gear, tangled up, Chuck was left worried but soon she dunked herself under the water.

A couple of worrying minutes later, she resurfaced without the net attached.

Although she managed to set herself free, the net still remains out in the sea, being a risk to other animals. Chuck said: “I was on a small exploration ship, north of Svalbard in the Arctic when she spotted a female polar bear in the pack ice. “The bear was curious about our presence, and we watched it as it frolicked on the ice, tossing the remains of the seal about and jumping from floe to floe. “At one point, it entered the water and resurfaced, tangled in a heavy fishing net. He added: “After several minutes being tangled in the net, it disappeared under the water. “A couple of minutes later, it resurfaced without the net. “The net is still out there, and it remains a risk to this particular bear and others.”