How to Make a Dip Net
Catching water life with a dip net is a great way to explore living aquatic organisms. You can sweep the net through the water while holding its long handle and scoop up all sorts of creatures to observe for a short while. You can make this simple dip net for you and your kids easily with things that you have around the house. Then you can all enjoy an outing to a nearby pond together and take turns catching water animals with your dip net.
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Things You'll Need
- Wire coat hanger
- Old pair of pantyhose
- Needle and thread
- Duct tape
- Stout stick, broomstick or dowel rod
- Rubber water boots
- Large plastic bucket
- Wide plastic basin
Instructions
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1
Bend the coat hanger into the shape of a rough square. Straighten the hook section of the hanger.
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2
Cut the legs from an old pair of pantyhose right below the knees. Tie the ends of the legs together.
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3
Push the squared wire hanger into the top half inch of the waistband of the pantyhose. Pull the knot in the legs through to the other side of the hanger. This overlapping of the pantyhose will keep tiny organisms from getting stuck under the lip of the waistband. Stitch the top of the pantyhose to the wire hanger with needle and thread.
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4
Tightly duct tape the straightened hook of the hanger to a stick, dowel rod or broomstick to create the dip net's handle.
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5
Put on your rubber water boots and hold a bucket with some pond water in it in one hand, the dip net in the other. Carefully wade into a pond. Don't wade deep enough to get water into the tops of your boots.
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6
Set the net on the bottom of the pond while holding the handle upright. Walk through the water very slowly, gently moving the net up and down. Every so often, stop and empty the net's contents into the bucket of pond water.
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Go to the pond's shore after you've dipped the net several times. Empty the contents of the bucket into a wide basin in the shade, and check out the creatures you have caught. Return them to their pond after about 10 to 15 minutes of observation.
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Tips & Warnings
Don't keep the animals that you catch out of their pond for more than about 10 or 15 minutes. Many depend upon that large body of water for their oxygen supply. Still others, like native turtles, are endangered due to over-collection of their species.
