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The true lobster has claws on the first four legs, lacking in the spiny lobster; the spiny lobster has a pair of horns above the eyes, lacking in the true lobster. To avoid confusion over common names, it is best to call the true lobster the "American lobster," and the spiny lobster just that. The spiny lobster is found in warm waters off Florida, in the West Indies, and off southern California. Record weight for the American lobster is 45 pounds. How far do lobsters travel? Inshore lobsters tend to stay in one place, seldom moving more than a mile or so, but deepwater lobsters farther out on the Continental Shelf follow a seasonal migratory pattern shoreward in summer, returning to the Shelf again in the autumn. The record travel so far is 225 miles covered by a lobster tagged off the Continental Shelf and recovered at Port Jefferson, Long Island, New York. What color is a lobster's blood? Colorless. When exposed to oxygen, it develops a bluish color. What is "tomalley"? Tomalley is the lobster's liver. It turns green when cooked and is considered a delicacy. What is the coral colored material often seen in a cooked lobster? Coral is the egg mass of a female lobster. Cooking colors the tiny eggs a deep coral or red. This is also considered a delicacy, otherwise known as "Lobster Caviar" How does a lobster grow? Lobsters grow by molting. This is the process in which they struggle out of their old shells while simultaneously absorbing water which expands their body size. This molting, or shell-shedding, occurs about 25 times in the first 5-7 years of life. Following this cycle, the lobster will weigh approximately one pound and reach minimum legal size. A lobster at minimum legal size may then only molt once per year and increase about 15% in length and 40% in weight. No one has yet found a way to determine the exact age of a lobster. However, based on scientific knowledge of body size at age, the maximum age attained may approach 100 years. They can grow to be 3 feet or more in overall body length. How many times must a lobster molt before it reaches market size? Between 20 and 30 molts take place before a lobster reaches the one-pound market size. How old is a one-pound lobster? No one knows exactly, but aquarium studies suggest 5 to 7 years. How many one-pound lobsters are needed for a pound of lobster meat? Five is the average. How long can a lobster live out of water? Several days if kept in a cool, moist environment. The lobster is a gill-breather, and moisture is essential to survival. Can a lobster be kept alive in fresh water with ice? No. Fresh water is lethal to a lobster. The animal has salty blood and tissue, which require a seawater environment if life is to be maintained. Why does a lobster turn red when cooked? The red pigment is the most stable component of the coloring in a lobster shell. The greens and browns, which darken the shell in a live lobster are destroyed by cooking. How can one tell if a boiled lobster was alive when cooked? Upon the death of a lobster the tail loses its elasticity and ability to curl under the body. When plunged into boiling water, a live lobster curls its tail under. It remains in that position during and after cooking. Have people been poisoned by eating lobsters that were allowed to die before being cooked? Is it true that a dead lobster deteriorates very rapidly? What happens when a lobster is frozen? Lobsters are not poisonous if they die before cooking, but cooking should not be delayed. Lobsters and other crustaceans do spoil rapidly after death and therefore must be cooked the day they arrive, unlike frozen lobster. Frozen lobster has a twelve- month shelf life in the freezer and a four-day shelf in the refrigerator once thawed. Cooking and freezing the lobsters just after harvest stops the deteriorative changes and harmful chemical actions that follow soon after the death of a live lobster. I've heard that lobsters molt, but I've never seen a cast-off shell. Why? After molting, lobsters will eat voraciously, often devouring their own recently vacated shells. This replenishment of lost calcium hastens the hardening of the new shell, which takes about 14-30 days from the actual loss of the old shell. How is the health of the lobster resource? Northeast fishermen and resource managers are working together to ensure the lobster population is managed co-efficiently. Presently major conservation measures include safeguarding lobsters smaller than 31/4" carapace length (carapace length is measured from the rear of the eye socket to the rear of the main body shell). Any lobster that is smaller in carapace length than 31/4" must be returned unharmed to the sea. Egg-bearing females are also protected and if caught, must be placed back in the sea. Lobster traps must have escape vents to allow too-small lobsters to exit the trap while it is still on the bottom. Nutrition Facts In its pure, fresh from the shell form, lobster is a low-fat source of protein, vitamins and minerals, including: Zinc: Essential for a healthy immune system, increased brain activity and overall health. Phosphorus: A primary component of healthy bones, teeth, gums and many other tissues, phosphorus also promotes healthy kidney function. Vitamin B12: Also known as cobalamin, Vitamin B12 maintains healthy nerve cells and red blood cells. Copper: Copper is a trace mineral that has been proven to ward off several dangerous conditions including: osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis and colon cancer. Selenium: In addition to promoting the normal function of the immune system and thyroid gland, Selenium also protects cells against the effect of free radicals during normal oxygen metabolism.
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