Mobster Lobster

Skeleton on the outside,

Teeth on the inside.

Eyes hang on stalks,

Legs for walks.

Lobster is a mobster,

As he eats the other lobster.


Image Credit: Flickr User Robert Banh, via CC

Oh! That heavenly plate of lobster simmered in lemon  with creamy butter. Don’t we all like our lobster like that? But there is much more to know about lobster, in fact, only a very few of  all types of lobsters are eaten. There are many interesting facts about the lobsters. Shall we start?

Lobsters can swim, walk  and steer if they want to. The paddles that cover a lobster’s stomach help him swim. The lobster can swim or walk forward and sideways but not as fast as backwards. However if there is a need to speed the lobster just flaps its fan shaped tail and it just zooms away. The funny thing is that it moves backwards! Well there must be a lot of crashes then, moving backwards. Actually no! A lobster has eyes on stalks that move in every direction, so they do not bump anywhere. How interesting! So if a lobster is around he can keep an eye on you all the time ha!

Lobsters are ten-legged crustaceans (hard shell on the outside).  They are closely related to shrimp and crabs. They come out to hunt in the night  for fish, mollusks and algae. They can’t see very properly in the night and use their antennas to find food and stay away from danger. During daytime, they just relax and hide in dark burrows. Big fishes and seals hunt lobsters.

lobster claw

Image Credit: Flickr Julia Koefender, via CC

Lobsters use their claws for tearing and digging. One of the claws is heavy enough to dig through sand and gravel. It can also crush the shells. The other claw has sharp sawlike teeth that tear the food. His body parts acts like weapons and the hard shell like an armor. If it weren’t for this armor, the lobsters would not survive. They would be easy preys.

When a lobster grows, the shell does not grow with it. So it has to shed its shell. This process is called moulting. In fact, for the first few years it almost happens many times every year. Later it reduces to once or twice an year. When this happens the lobster is very weak. It takes a few weeks for the new shell to harden and until then the lobster stays hidden in the seaweed that grows on the ocean floor. Not all lobsters survive moulting, but those that do eat the old shell as it is an excellent source of calcium.

Lobster babies

Image Credit: Flickr User tiswango, via CC

Lobster mom can lay upto 50,000 eggs at a time. The babies hatch and paddle up to the surface of water to find any floating food. After a few weeks, they sink to the ocean floor.

Interesting facts about lobsters

  • The lobster will eat itself if left alone in a tank.
  • Although lobsters are different colors, when cooked they all become red lobsters ;)
  • Lobster blood is colourless when the lobster is alive, but turns white when cooked.


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