I 



Nature of Lobsters 



Lobsters are scavengers. They are also cannibals. 



They are essentially a bottom-living animal, using their 

 powers of swimming only in an emergency. Caught lobsters 

 seem sluggish, but in their natural element lobsters are 

 agile, wary, pugnacious, capable of defending themselves 

 against larger enemies, and on occasion and for short dis- 

 tances they exhibit surprising speed. Where several lob- 

 sters of equal size are kept in a tank they will usually live 

 in peace. But if one is injured, as by the loss of a claw, it 

 will be quickly attacked by the stronger and destroyed. 

 This trait is one reason for plugging a lobster's claw. 



Like all scavengers, they have highly developed senses 

 for locating their food. 1 



Lobsters are essentially creatures of twilight, and ex- 

 plore the bottom in search of food mainly after sundown or 

 at night, when it is usually more active than in daylight. 

 Lobstermen know this, and it is the reason they leave pots 

 down overnight. - 



The lobsters of England, Scotland, and northern Eu- 

 rope are true lobsters in that they have crusher claws, as 

 distinguished from crawfish and the so-called African " lob- 

 sters." They differ from the American lobster only slightly, 

 chiefly in the rostrum or beak, which is narrower in the Eu- 

 ropean lobster and has teeth only on its upper margin. 

 European lobsters are usually smaller than the American. 



Lobsters were in unbelievable abundance in the early 

 days. Those thrown up on the beaches were a nuisance, 

 and were used for fertilizer. A Hingham historian reports 

 windrows of lobsters eighteen inches deep cast up after a 

 hard storm. In early Plymouth days any youngster could 

 wade out and capture by hand all he needed. An early re- 



1 See Taste, page 18. 



2 See Sight, page 17. 



