LOBSTER INSTITUTE

Consumer FAQs

  What’s the difference between a hard shell and soft shell lobster?

Lobster will periodically shed their shells as they grow.  This can happen as many as 25 times before they are 6-7 years old; then males shed every year and mature females every two years.  When lobsters become very large molting is less frequent.  After they shed they have a paper thin shell, which can take up to two months to harden, and are called soft-shell, new-shell or shedders.  The debate goes on as to which is most tasty, though the soft-shell are definitely easier to crack!  Either is welcome on our dinner table!        

  Do lobsters feel pain when you cook them?

The nervous system of a lobster is very simple – not unlike that of an insect.  Neither insects nor lobsters have brains.  For an organism to perceive pain it must have a more complex nervous system.  Neurophysiologists tell us that lobsters, like insects, do not process pain.

  How can you minimize the movement of a lobster when its placed in a cooking pot?

A few seconds after a lobster is dropped in boiling water it will begin to twitch its tail.  The tail movement,  which can continue for about one minute, is part of a reflex action found in lobster known as the escape response – it is a reflex action to any stimulus.  We’ve found the most effective way is to minimize the lobster’s movement time is to chill/ice it before dropping it in water that has come to a rolling boil.

  What is the white “goop” you find in the lobsters and the water after you cook them?

This is the hemolymph, often referred to as the blood of the lobster.

  What is the green stuff you find in the cooked lobsters?  Can you eat it?

This is the tomalley or tamali, which functions like the liver, pancreas and intestines in the lobster.  Many find it delicious to eat.  Recently there have been concerns about finding dioxin in tomalley.  The Maine Lobster Promotion Council offers this advice to consumers and concerned citizens:  “(According to the Advanced Seafood Handbook,) ‘there are no known safety considerations when it comes to eating lobster meat.  However, consumers are advised not to eat the tomalley, the light green substance found in the lobster's carapace.  This is the liver and pancreas, which are thought to accumulate contaminants from the environment.’  Much like the liver of other animals, the lobster's tomalley is the natural filter for contaminants, like dioxins, from entering the system.  Finding the dioxins in the lobster tomalley is regrettable, and certainly a sign of the times in which we live.  However, it is also a reassuring indication of the lobster's natural defense system at work, keeping the lobster meat wholesome, nutritious and delicious.”

  What is the red stuff you find inside along the tail of cooked lobster?  Can you eat it?
This reddish “coral” as it is called is lobster roe or eggs.  Some consider it a gourmet treat.

 What do you call a lobster with one claw?  Will that lost claw grow back?           

 A lobster that has lost one claw or has any missing appendage is called a cull.  One that has lost two claws is called a bullet or dummie.  Lobsters can grow back new claws, legs, and antennae.

  What are the parts of a lobster trap?   

Traps or pots where originally make of wood, typically oak.  Wire mesh traps have replaced the wooden traps for the most part.  Lobster enter through the net “head” to go after the bait in a bait bag placed in the “kitchen”.  When it tries to exit it lands in the “bedroom” or “parlor”.  Some traps have more than one kitchen and bedroom.  Traps are required to have an escape vent that is large enough to letter all but the legal size lobsters escape.   Traps also are equipped with runners that help prevent legs, claws and antennae from being pinched between the bottom of the trap and the boat when the traps are hauled.

  Do lobstermen fish all year?

Fishing regulations vary from state to state in the U.S., and district to district in Canada.  In Maine, lobstermen can    fish year round.  However, lobsters are less active as water temperature drops.

Answ ers to these FAQs were prepared by the Lobster Institute. 
For more information contact:

Lobster Institute
210 Rogers Hall * University of Maine
Orono, ME  04473
207-581-1443  
cathy.billings@umit.maine.edu

Created 7/23/02