In This Edition - Winter 2002

• A Lobster by Any Other Name
  
  
• Institute Sponsors Lecture by Canadian Lobster Biologist Susan Waddy
  
  
• 2001 Friends of the Lobster Institute Honor Roll
  
  
• Research Report
  
  
• Lobster Institute Provides Educational Outreach
  
  
• Choose Another Bulletin

A Lobster by Any Other Name

   Our lobster, Homarus americanus, the American lobster, can be found from the Canadian Maritimes down to North Carolina, about 1300 miles to the south, but it is most abundant in Maine waters. (In fact it is so closely identified with Maine that Canadian lobsters being transported by truck through Maine are frequently passed off as "Maine lobsters" by the time they've crossed into New Hampshire.) The "Maine" or "American" lobster is a crustacean with two strong claws: a big-toothed crusher claw for pulverizing shells and a finer-edged ripper claw resembling a steak knife, for tearing soft flesh. (A lobster which carries its crusher claw on the right is a "right-handed" lobster.)

   Of the 30 or so types of clawed lobsters worldwide, the American lobster most closely resembles its European cousin, Homarus gammarus, though the western Atlantic crustacean has more robust tearing and crushing claws. In France this lobster is called homard; in Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, it is a hummer.

   The clawless spiny lobster, Panulirus argus, of more southerly waters, is a distant relation of the American lobster. "Lobster tail" comes from any of the 45 species of spiny lobsters of the Palinuridae family. Sometimes called crayfish, crawfish, rock lobster, or langouste, this lobster has a spine-studded shell and long antennae but no large front claws. Instead, the heavily- armored antennae can inflict a tearing wound when the lobster thrashes them whip-like against an opponent.

   One of the strangest sights reported by fishermen and divers is the "lobster march". Hundreds, sometimes thousands, of spiny lobsters form columns of as many as 60 lobsters to migrate en masse, often after a storm. Are they migrating to their breeding grounds, seeking warmer water, or searching for a new food supply? Why they march is still a mystery.

   The slipper or shovel-nose lobster looks like a crustacean with a flattened face. It is sometimes hard to tell the front from the rear of this lobster with its broad, flat body and very short antennae. Slipper lobsters are harvested in shallow, tropical waters from muddy bottoms, but are not as sought after as other lobsters.

   The freshwater crayfish, crawfish, or crawdad resembles a miniature lobster. Its color may range from pink to orange to dark blue. In the gluttonous days of the ancient Roman Empire, crayfish were kept well-fed in large earthenware pots in preparation for royal feasts. The ancient Romans knew then what we have come to appreciate over the past 150 years: lobsters, by any name, taste delicious.

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Institute Sponsors Lecture by Canadian Lobster Biologist Susan Waddy

The Lobster Institute sponsored a lecture by Susan Waddy, a scientist with Canada’s federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, on January 26 as part of the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association Annual Weekend. Waddy shared findings from her research on lobster reproduction conducted over a period of more than twenty-five years at her laboratory in St. Andrew’s, New Brunswick.  For highlights of her presentation please refer to this issue’s “Research Report”.   z

Biologist Susan Waddy presents findings from her research on lobster reproduction at the recent Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association Annual Weekend

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2001 Friends of the Lobster Institute Honor Roll

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    ResearchReport

Readers may contact the Lobster Institute for more detailed information on any of the projects reported.  

Our LobsterCam has been temporarily pulled from Rockland Harbor for repairs to the casing that secures it to the trap.  Our thanks to Sealure North American for sponsoring LobsterCam and providing bait for the trap.  You can find LobsterCam on our website at www.lobsterinstiture.org.

v      Grant from Kikkoman allows bait research to continue – The Lobster Institute and Dr. Juan Carlos Rodriquez Sousa have been notified they will receive a $31,000 grant from Kikkoman that will allow studies on a soybean-based alternative bait to continue through the spring.

v      Computer Simulation of Lobster Fishery Model – Dick Allen, fisheries consultant and lobsterman from Point Judith, RI (F/V Ocean Pearl) has been working as a Pew Fellow for Marine Conservation to develop a computer simulation model of the lobster fishery. Allen presented a demonstration version of the computer simulation at the recent Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association Annual Weekend and will also demonstrate the computer program at the upcoming Maine Fishermen’s Forum.  According to Allen, his program “adds a user-friendly interface to the official egg-per-recruit model that is used in the management of the U.S. Atlantic lobster fishery.”  His simulation will soon be available as a download from his website, www.lobsterconservation.com and on CD.  His goal is to present the model in a format that is understandable to fishermen and that will allow them to use the model to answer “what if” questions related to how they fish. (i.e. “What if I hauled 10 more traps per day?”)  Allen said he hopes to help fishermen “make the best us of the crop of lobsters that Mother Nature gives us.”

v      Highlights of Biologist Susan Waddy’s Findings on Lobster Reproduction –Susan Waddy, from the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans, presented findings of her years of study on lobster reproduction at this year’s Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association Annual Weekend.  Starting in the early 70s, Waddy held and observed lobsters in her laboratory over a long period of time (some as long as 27 years).  Studies focused on those 4.7 – 6 inches.  Here are highlights:

·   Contrary to assumptions, bigger/older female lobsters are very productive.  4.7 inch females spawn more often than smaller lobsters and produce more eggs.  According to Waddy, “unlike humans female lobsters don’t stop reproducing in the middle of their life.”
·   With every mating larger female lobsters accept enough sperm for 2 batches of eggs and can store viable sperm up to 3 years.  
·   Females do not mate only immediately after molting.  Further the amount of time between molts for a larger lobster is typically only 2 years (the longest time between molts observed was 5 years, in a male). If a large female is ready to lay eggs, even in a non-molt year, and she does not have stored sperm, she will actively search out a male to mate. She doesn’t have to be in a soft-shell condition to mate
·   During reproduction, one 3-pound lobster will produce an amount of eggs equivalent to the amount produced by seven 1-pound lobsters.  And over a period of four years, the 3-pound lobster will produce a quantity of eggs equivalent to that of twelve 1-pound lobsters.
·   There is little difference in the survival rate of larvae from large versus small lobsters.

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Lobster Institute Provides Educational Outreach

In addition to scientific study, educational outreach is a primary part of the Lobster Institute’s mission. Lobster Institute researchers and staff frequently visit industry organizations, community groups, and schools to talk about the lobster, the lobster fishery, and the latest research being conducted. Student groups are also welcome to visit on campus, by appointment. The Institute’s website also serves as an educational tool. Plans are in place to expand the information on lobster biology provided on the Institute’s site.

The Institute is also a resource for teachers and businesses looking for lobster related photographs and other educational materials.  A serious of photographs was recently sent electronically to both a lobster business in Florida, and a professor at Emory University in Atlanta.  Here’s what they had to say:

“Thank you so much for taking the time to find me those photos. Three of the four are going to work and we are going to use all three as post cards to remind diners of our lobster promotion.”    Andy Hurst, 15^th Street Fisheries, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

“Thanks so much! I'll be showing the slides as part of a series of introductory lectures on Fishers and Fisheries of the world - basically a tour of gear, boats, lives of fishermen etc.”  Lore Ruttan, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Studies, Emory University

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