Lobster: 15 Fast Facts

Lobsters are greenish until cooked; then they turn red.

       The lobster is one of the most singularly-formed members of the animal kingdom, called a crustacean by the scientist because it is invested with an outer hard, shell-like surface, or crust. As a crustacean, the lobster is related to the shrimp, crab, barnacle, etc.

15 Fast Facts About Lobsters:

1. The body of the lobster has seven distinct segments, while thirteen minor ones, which form the thorax and head, are so blended together as not to be easily distinguished.
2. The animal has two pairs of antennae and six pairs of mouth organs.
3. The first pair of legs is long and terminates in large claws, one of which is thick and very heavy and is used for crushing objects.
4. The other claw is shorter, smaller, more or less curved, toothed and pointed at the tip.
5. The claws are really pinchers, which can be closed when fighting or when the animal seizes its prey.
6. The tail is composed of the last segment and has two wide appendages on each side, making a broad incurved organ, which the animal uses in swimming.
7. By straightening this tail and drawing it forcibly under, the lobster is thrown backward through the water at a rapid rate.
8. The animal has two large, compound eyes, situated at the end of thick stocks.
9. Its senses of hearing and sight are keen.
10. The female carries her eggs on the under side of the abdomen until they hatch, when the young are driven away and for a time swim about freely near the surface.
11. After about a month they descend to the bottom, where they remain. The lobster lives on the bottom of the sea and rarely rises more than a few feet from it.
12. It walks about on the tips of its legs, extending the large claws forward and pushing itself along by the swimming feet.
13. Lobsters are highly esteemed for food. They are caught in pots, which are traps made of wood, sunk among the rocks in the clear water in which the animals live. The pots have a funnel-shaped opening and are baited with fresh meat, which attracts the lobsters.
14. When they have once entered the trap they are unable to escape.
15. When taken from the water the lobster has a greenish appearance. The brilliant red color of those placed upon the market is produced by boiling.

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