October 13, 2015 — Where are all the baby lobsters? And if Maine’s baby lobsters are disappearing, does that mean there won’t be any adults in a couple years?
The publication Quartz earlier this month released a long-form research piece on Maine’s lobster boom, which reached another record haul last year with 124 million pounds, a pile of crustaceans worth $456 million and one six times bigger than the state’s lobstermen caught in 1984.
This explosion of lobster over the last couple decades has been well-documented and thoroughly covered.
The adult lobster population off the coast of Maine has skyrocketed as the state’s lobstermen have employed a range of practices to sustain the fishery (see the video above). Lobstermen throw back female lobsters bearing eggs and larger males — the ideal fathers — as part of a multifaceted plan to encourage future generations of lobsters.
By all accounts, this is not a case of lobstermen irresponsibly taking advantage of a freak boom and setting their industry up for future failure.
Read the full story and watch the video from the Bangor Daily News