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Lobster

American lobsters have been caught for food and bait since colonial times. They are greenish-brown in color and live alone on the ocean floor from Maine to North Carolina, feeding on a variety of prey depending on their life stage. Lobsters can live to be about 100 years old, though it is difficult to determine their exact age since they molt and shed their shells as they grow. They breathe using gills and can regrow limbs if lost.

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Hartford Courant
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87 views

Lobster

American lobsters have been caught for food and bait since colonial times. They are greenish-brown in color and live alone on the ocean floor from Maine to North Carolina, feeding on a variety of prey depending on their life stage. Lobsters can live to be about 100 years old, though it is difficult to determine their exact age since they molt and shed their shells as they grow. They breathe using gills and can regrow limbs if lost.

Uploaded by

Hartford Courant
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Connecticut

Nature
Common Core Standards Common Core Standards ELA: Reading Informational Text (3.1-7 through 6.1-7)

Animal Spotlight - American Lobster


Written by Mystic Aquarium

Did you know that fishermen have been catching American lobsters for food, bait, and fertilizer since colonial
times? American lobsters not only make delicious meals for humans, but are a great source of food for many
sea creatures, both as young zooplankton (small animals that float freely with ocean currents) and older adults.
A variety of animals including fish, sharks, rays, crabs, and octopus feed on lobsters. Lobsters are opportunistic
feeders meaning that they feed on whatever prey is most available to them. Most lobster species feed on zoo-
plankton in their first year, then crabs, clams, worms, sea urchins, sea stars and fish as adults.

American lobsters live mainly in the coastal waters of the northwest Atlantic Ocean from Maine to North Carolina.
They can also be found from Maine to Virginia in water up to 2,300 feet deep. American lobsters are very territo-
rial and live alone on the ocean floor in many different habitats. Lobsters can survive almost anywhere as long
as there is a rocky area or cave to protect them from predators (animals that eat other animals to survive).

The American lobster has a large shrimp-like


body, hard shell, and ten legs, two of which
are large, strong claws. One is a crusher
claw for crushing shells, while the other is a
ripper claw for tearing soft flesh. They have
powerful jaws to grind their food, as well as
a set of teeth inside their muscular stomachs
to do the chewing. Most American lobsters
are greenish-brown in color, with orange,
reddish or black areas. They have long
life spans, but it is difficult to discover their
exact age because they shed their hard shell
(called molting) when they grow, leaving no
sign of their age. It is the belief of many sci-
entists that some American lobsters may live
to be about 100 years old!

Cool Connections to Learn More:


• Visit http://www.mysticaquarium.org/animals-and-exhibits/exhibits/indoor for information on Mystic Aquarium’s
Discovery Lab exhibit and the rare blue lobster that calls it home.

• Visit National Geographic at http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/lobster/ to learn


more fun facts about lobsters.

• Take part in a Mystic Aquarium class, summer camp or teacher workshop either at your
school or at the Aquarium to learn more about a variety of marine animals.
Visit http://www.mysticaquarium.org/fun-and-learning for more information.

Co r n e r
Did You Know? Aquarist’s
• Female American lobsters can lay 5,000
to 100,000 eggs (depending on their age and
size).

• The largest lobster recorded was caught off


the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada measuring Questions and Answers with a Mystic Aquarium Aquarist
3.5 feet long and weighing 44.4 pounds. Q: How do lobsters breathe?
A: Lobsters breathe using gills. They breathe air that is dissolved in the water.
• Giant lobsters, once common in New Eng-
land, have become increasingly rare due to Q: Can lobsters regrow their claws?
overfishing. A: Yes! They can they regrow claws, legs, and antennae.
Q: How do lobsters move?
A: They can walk on their legs and can also flap their tail to
swim backwards.

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