So, if you were a seaweed-eating sea turtle, would this "biodegradable" balloon look like a tasty snack to you? Yes, many latex balloons are biodegradable. But they don't disappear overnight. In fact it can take months. While they are biodegrading, they start to shred (like in this photo) and can start to look like seaweed or squid, the natural prey items for many animals that live in the ocean. And if the strings are attached? They don't biodegrade for a much longer time, if at all. So ingesting a balloon is bad enough, but with string in tow, there is a really good chance that that animal is going to have some serious intestinal issues!