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Lobster, European
Homarus gammarus
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BIOLOGY
The lobster's appearance is unmistakeable: dark blue shell (turns red only when boiled) with pale yellow markings and long red antennae. The claws are of unequal size, with one large crushing claw and a slimmer cutting claw. They may live 50 years or more. Body length up to 100cm but lengths of around 50cm are more typical, and weight 9kgs. Females mature at around 75-80mm carapace length (CL), at 5-7 years of age. Lobsters mate in late summer when the females moult, but females can store the sperm packet over the winter so eggs are not fertilised and laid until the following summer. Female lobsters bearing or carrying eggs are termed 'berried'. The European lobster inhabits rocky seabeds living in caves and excavated burrows from the lower shore to 60m depth.
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ADVICE
Avoid eating animals below the legal minimum landing size, egg-bearing or large animals (females) which contribute to the breeding stock. The number of eggs produced by an egg-bearing female is proportional to her size. Lobster potting is a more selective fishing method than netting with reduced bycatch levels. Choose pot caught lobsters or MSC certified rock lobsters from Western Australia or California.
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