October 22, 2022 — Maine’s lobster industry is renowned for harvesting the sweetest, most tender lobster meat in the world. Our rocky coastline, craggy ocean bottoms and water that is neither too warm nor too cold set us up perfectly for the Homarus americanus, or American lobster, species we harvest. They are the most sought after in the world, and even inspired the name of a restaurant chain.
Maine’s iconic crustacean is not only a billion-dollar industry, but also a part of our state’s ethos and heritage. We’ve been fishing for these “bugs” since the 1800s, and the industry was one of the first to self-regulate when fishermen adopted a rule 150 years ago to protect the fishery by returning egg-bearing females. Size and other limitations have been put in place since to ensure the population’s sustainability.
Lobstering can be a hazardous profession, too. The typical season for most of Maine’s lobstermen is June to October when lobsters are closer to shore in their preferred habitat of up to 164 feet of water. When the water gets cold, however, they can move as far as 30 miles offshore where conditions are more challenging and dangerous for fishermen.