Sea Stats - Spiny Lobster
Sea Stats - Spiny Lobster
Sea Stats - Spiny Lobster
T SPINY
he beautifully marked Caribbean protection from predators and can
spiny lobster has long been a favorite present a hazard to anyone handling the
Florida seafood and is one of our animal without wearing gloves. There
LOBSTER
most important fisheries. As a result, are two large prominent spines,
marine conservation laws have been sometimes called horns, above the
implemented to protect this valuable eyes.
species from being overexploited, and A spiny lobster’s body has two
management efforts are continually main parts: the cephalothorax (head
being examined to ensure the Mysterious Crustacean section) and the abdomen (tail section).
sustainability of this fishery.
of the Caribbean The cephalothorax comprises the head,
a cape-like carapace or shell, the
Description mouthparts, antennae, antennules
(smaller antennae-like structures), and ten walking
The Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) is a legs. Spiny lobsters wave their long, spiny antennae
crustacean closely related to crabs, shrimp, and like whips for fighting and defense. They use the shorter
crayfish. Common names for this lobster include antennules to sense movement and detect chemicals
crayfish, crawfish, langosta, and Florida lobster. There in the water. The lobster’s mouth, located on the
are about 12 species of lobster in Florida; Caribbean underside of and toward the front of the cephalothorax,
spiny lobsters are by far the largest and most abundant. is surrounded by large, heavy structures called
They vary from whitish to a dark red-orange. The two mandibles, or jaws, and by maxillipeds, or accessory
large, cream-colored spots on top of the second jaws. Both sets of jaws are used for biting and grinding
segment of the tail section are the diagnostic features food and directing it into the mouth.
for identifying this species. There are also two smaller The abdomen, or tail section, is narrower than the
cream-colored spots adjacent to the tail fan. Spiny cephalothorax. The shell covering the tail section is
lobsters lack the large, distinctive, crushing claws of divided into six ring-like segments, and each segment
their northern cousins, the American lobster. ends in a spine on each side. Under the tail are four
The name “spiny” comes from the strong, forward- pairs of small leaf-like structures called pleopods (or
curving spines projecting from the hard shell that covers swimmerets). The tail ends in a flat, flexible fan with a
the body and antennae of the lobster. The spines act as broad center section—the telson—and has two lobes
carapace
antenna
eyestalk
n
me
abdo
antennules
TAIL FAN
swimmerets
(pleopods)
walking
legs
(pereopods)
Lobster art by James Seagle
Tail fan art by Diane Rome Peebles uropods telson
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on other tiny drifting animals (plankton). Carried by The soft, vulnerable animal quickly absorbs water and
ocean currents, the drifting phyllosome passes through expands before the new, and larger, exoskeleton
11 developmental stages before finally changing into a hardens. The process of molting and acquiring a new
transparent, swimming, lobster-like form called the exoskeleton takes about two days.
puerulus. Scientists have long thought this larval stage About three months after settling, with a carapace
lasts as long as 9 months, but in 2005 P. argus larvae length of about one inch (2.5 cm), a juvenile leaves the
were reared by one lobster scientist from a phyllosome algal clumps for a hardbottom habitat of sponges,
to a puerulus in 142 days. solution holes (mini-sinkholes), and small coral heads.
The puerulus does not feed at all; its mission is to About two years after the puerulus settles, the lobster
swim from the open ocean to nearshore waters and has reached a carapace length of about three inches.
find a place to settle, preferably in clumps of red algae Sexual maturity is also reached around this time.
in a hardbottom area. Occasionally, the puerulus will As spiny lobsters mature, they migrate seaward to
settle in seagrass. By the time the puerulus has found offshore reefs. In remote areas or when protected from
a suitable habitat, it has begun to develop brown and fishing, spiny lobsters can grow to over 15 pounds and
white markings as camouflage. Within a week of may live for 20 years.
settling, the puerulus molts and develops into a juvenile
spiny lobster.
Range and Habitat
Caribbean spiny lobsters are widely distributed
throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the
Many of the adult lobsters caught in Florida Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico,
are hatched from eggs that may have come inhabiting the seas around Bermuda, the West Indies,
from as far away as South America. and southern Florida. They have been reported as far
north as Beaufort, North Carolina, and as far south as
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
A juvenile lobster feeds at night on crustaceans Adult spiny lobsters live in the caverns and crevices
and mollusks and hides during daylight hours, a of coral reefs and hardbottom areas, hiding during the
nocturnal pattern that continues throughout adulthood. day and emerging at night to hunt and eat. Both juveniles
As the lobster grows, it molts. When a lobster molts, and adults are opportunistic feeders and will eat a wide
a line along each side of the carapace splits and the variety of prey. Their preferred diet is small crustaceans
soft, flexible animal backs out through the opening. and mollusks.
3
Occasionally adult lobsters participate in mass Approximately 40% of a season’s landings are brought
migrations, marching in line from shallower water to in during the first month; landings decrease sharply
deeper ocean in response to some environmental cue. afterward. Landings decline further after the opening
Each animal uses its antennae to maintain contact with of the stone crab fishery on the 15th of October.
the one ahead, a behavior known as “queuing.” A line Although Florida lobsters have probably been
or queue (pronounced cue) of lobsters may have only harvested for personal consumption since the first
a few or more than 60 animals marching seaward. humans arrived here, it could be argued that the sport
Because moving through water creates considerable of lobster fishing began in the 1930s with the “goggle
drag, each lobster behind the leader saves energy by fishermen.” These were free divers (no scuba gear, just
taking advantage of the turbulence created by the one a mask) and were therefore limited to shallow water.
ahead. As the leader tires, another moves up to become Deeper recreational fishing did not occur until the
leader and the leader falls back to another place in line. popularization of scuba diving in the 1950s. Today, the
If attacked, the queue forms a circle with their antennae typical recreational harvest is 1.5 to 2 million pounds
facing outward, like a herd of bison facing a predator. between the start of the two-day sport season in July
and Labor Day—or 20% to 25% of the season’s total
harvest of spiny lobster.
June 2010
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Fish and Wildlife Research Institute
100 8th Avenue SE, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • (727) 896-8626 • http://research.MyFWC.com