LOBSTER, CRAB, AND SHRIMP 259 



duce their kind. Further, since the young lobsters 

 grow so slowly, and have so many enemies which are 

 constantly diminishing their number, many larval 

 lobsters must be hatched in order to have one survive 

 to reach maturity. 



The lobster industry of northern Europe has 

 passed through the same stages as that of America. 

 Lobsters, which were once very plentiful, have been 

 decimated by over-fishing, and are now very scarce 

 and high in price. 



Lobsters are in many respects the most curious 

 creatures that live in the sea. Many biologists have 

 studied their gro\\i;h and life in order to find means 

 of propagating these crustaceans. Much has been 

 learned that has aided in the solution of the problem, 

 and recently the Rhode Island Commission of In- 

 land Fisheries has been successful in rearing lobsters 

 to the fifth or bottom-seeking stage of development. 



Female lobsters spawTi a large number of eggs in 

 a single batch, the number depending upon the size 

 of the lobster and varying from 3000 to 100,000. 

 The eggs are not discharged into the water to sink 

 to the bottom or float with the currents, but are 

 attached to the swimmerets on the under side of the 

 mother's tail by a waterproof cement. The eggs 

 remain attached to the mother's tail for ten to eleven 

 months, during which they slowly develop until they 

 hatch. 



The newly hatched larval lobster is transparent 

 and has a short shrimp-like body, with a ringed tail 

 stretched out almost horizontally, and a huge pointed 



