Lobsters have always been known as a delicacy but there’s more to them than mere taste! Let’s dive in and get to know these amazing ocean-dwelling creatures. Here are some of the largest lobsters that aged gracefully! Read on to know their story.
1. The Heaviest Marine Crustacean
- Weight: 44 lbs 6 oz (20.14 kg)
- Location: Nova Scotia, Canada
- Year: 1977
Nova Scotia has been known to produce a great number of large lobsters and on the 11th day of February 1977, one of the largest lobsters was caught. It was a gigantic American or North Atlantic lobster, estimated to have been 100 years old and weighed a remarkable 44 pounds and 6 ounces or 20.14 kilograms, earning its place as the heaviest marine crustacean in the Guinness World Records.
2. Rocky
- Weight: 27 lbs (12.25 kg)
- Location: Cushing, Maine
- Year: 2012
Coming in second as the largest lobster on this list is Rocky, a 27-pound lobster that got caught in a shrimping net somewhere on the coast of Cushing. He was described to be the same size as a 3-year-old human being. Fishermen in Maine are not legally allowed to keep lobsters measuring more than 5 inches from eyes to tail. Since Rocky was 40 inches or a meter long, he was turned over to the Maine State Aquarium but later on, he was released back to the ocean.
3. Louie
- Weight: 22 lbs (9.98 kg)
- Location: Hempstead, New York
- Year: 1997
I think you’d be surprised to know that one of these massive lobsters – Louie – grew to 22 pounds or 9.98 kilograms while living in a tank in Peter’s Clam Bar for 20 years.
When offered $1,000 for the lobster one Father’s Day, it has become a deciding point for owner Butch Yamali to finally release Louie into the wild. In honor of the National Lobster Week, he was set free near the Atlantic Beach Reef. It was made a ceremonious event with town officials attending.
4. George
- Weight: 20 lbs (9.07 kg)
- Location: Newfoundland, Canada
- Year: 2008
George has traveled a long way. Caught by a boating crew in Newfoundland, Canada in 2008, it was bought for $100 by City Crab and Seafood Restaurant in New York City. Being a 20-pound lobster, it’s easy for George to attract attention. No more than 10 days in a tank and 2 customers had taken notice of the said lobster and reported it to the People of the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Together with the restaurant manager Keith Valenti, they estimated George’s age to be 140 years based on the rule of thumb which, if true, would make it the oldest lobster in history, making it reach international headlines.
PETA sought for the creature’s release which Valenti readily agreed to. According to him, as reported in BBC News, “We never intended him to be sold, just draw attention to the restaurant, and he did.” Finally, George was freed on a Saturday near a rocky cove in Kennebunkport, Maine where lobster trapping is banned, the perfect place to keep it safe.
Here’s a fun fact: the place where George was set free is less than a mile from the summer home of former president George H.W. Bush.
Source : pressherald.com
5. The Big Dipper
- Weight: 20 lbs (9.07 kg)
- Location: Maine
- Year: 2015
Named after the lobster boat that caught this humongous creature, the Big Dipper was catching lobsters near Friendship in Maine when they caught the 20-pound creature as part of their haul. It was a 3 man crew with Isaac Lash as the captain and Levi Poland as the sternman. The deckhand, Ricky Louis Felice Jr. posted a picture of him holding the lobster on Facebook that immediately went viral.Since the creature far exceeds the legal size limit of lobsters in Maine, it was then released back into the ocean. The crew estimated it to be 75 years old, but Robert Steneck, a marine science professor at the University of Maine, stated that it was probably about 25 to 50 years old based on the photo. If you’d like to learn more, read the article in the Press Herald.
6. Larry
- Weight: 15 lbs (6.8 kg)
- Location: South Florida
- Year: 2016
Larry, as in Larry the lifeguard from Spongebob Squarepants, ended up at the Tin Fish Restaurant. Awed, the owner and founder Joe Melluso estimated that it was around 105 years old. This reached the local news where they posted a picture of the huge lobster on their Facebook page. Upon seeing this news, local Amir Rossi together with his friends decided to do whatever they could to save Larry. They were able to pitch in $300 for the shipment to Maine where Larry was freed.
Did you know that it was a narrow escape? Larry was supposed to be served to a group of customers but then, the restaurant’s Chef Dennis Alvares offered a 14-pound or 6.35 kilogram fish to those customers instead – definitely a close call.
It was truly moving to learn that these old-timers were able to continue living on with their lives in their natural habitat. It really makes one wonder how they’re doing right now. How big have they grown? How many more years have they lived? I guess, we’ll never know.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Could a giant lobster exist?
Asbjorn Drengstig, a biologist turned aquapreneur, mentioned in the Cordis European Commission, “…in principle you could grow giant lobsters in a controlled environment but it would take a very long time, many decades just for human size.”
Apparently, the growth of lobsters is regulated by the water’s temperature with 18-20 degrees centigrade being the most favorable. If you remember Louie from Hempstead, New York – he spent two decades of his life in a tank and grew to an astounding 22 pounds. What more if he was left in the wild?
Can lobsters live 200 years?
It is well-known that American lobsters – Homarus americanus – can live up to 100 years. It is however difficult to determine the exact age of lobsters (especially big ones) as they leave very little to no traces when they molt. But it is highly likely that lobsters can live much longer than a hundred years. George from Newfoundland, Canada was estimated to be 140 years old before he was freed. Just a little more than a half-century and he’ll be 200 years old!
Can lobsters feel pain?
There are a bunch of studies going back and forth whether invertebrates, including lobsters, feel any pain. As stated in National Geographic, lobsters’ reactions to harmful stimuli are just like knee-jerk reactions according to some scientists which is different from the pain we know. But then again, the evidence that supports the idea that seafood species feel pain continues to grow. As mentioned in their article, “It’s impossible to know for certain if lobsters’ experience of pain mirrors ours.”
How rare is a blue lobster?
Blue lobsters are so rare that the chances of finding one are one in two million! Were you aware that lobsters come in different colors aside from red, brown, and blue? They also come in shades of orange, yellow, and even crystal! Check out this quick-read article about them on BBC News.
What do lobsters eat?
You might be surprised to know that lobsters aren’t just scavengers in the ocean. They do, as a matter of fact, catch their own food including fish, mussels, sea urchins, clams, crabs, and sometimes even lobsters!