Mutant lobster diaries, volume 4

Every time I publish a post about mutant lobsters I get a bunch of people calling me out, saying that the deformities aren’t really that rare for “real” lobstermen to see.

One guy even called me an “irresponsible journalist”.

So I figured I’d better take the time to point something out that I thought the pictures of me making a fish face and my Captain with seaweed on his head included in the last post would have made apparent- the mutant lobster posts are meant for fun, they are not meant as investigative journalism stories.

Also, deformities typically are a result of a lobster’s shell growing around something like a rock or stick and are completely edible and safe to eat. Even the lobsters with the awful looking shell disease are safe to eat and they don’t taste any differently.

Maine lobster with an extra working claw

Maine lobster with an extra working claw

Maine lobster with severe shell disease

Maine lobster with severe shell disease

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One other thing, some of the lobsters pictured were either too big, too small, or breeders- you can tell which ones they are because they don’t have elastic bands on their claws, meaning they were tossed back after I got a chance to get their picture.

Partially blue lobster

Partially blue lobster

With that said, here’s the latest mutant to show up in a trap on the F/V Foxy Lady:

newmutant01

Three clawed lobster in Casco Bay, Maine.

 

Chris Shorr

About Chris Shorr

Chris is a sixth generation Portlander who loves all things Maine. He has worked with mentally ill and marginalized adults at a Portland non-profit, on a lobster boat in Casco Bay, at several high-end Portland restaurants, and at a local meat packing plant. He also ran for Portland City Council in 2013, wrote a weekly column in the now defunct Portland Daily Sun, and currently writes a weekly column in The Portland Phoenix.