Photo: Trougnouf · Image source ·CC BY 4.0
Animal profile · Crustaceans · Clawed lobster
American lobster
Homarus americanus
The American lobster is a large Atlantic crustacean with powerful claws. It grows by shedding its hard shell and is most active at night.
Not a fish · an aquatic neighborWater
Saltwater
Rocky coastal seafloor, reefs, and muddy bottoms.
Temperature
Range not established
A dependable species-specific wild temperature range was not established from the reviewed sources, so both values are null.
Size
Up to about 64 cm (25 in) long
About as long as a baseball bat
Lifespan
May live more than 50 years, though wild ages are difficult to determine.
Life expectancy varies with place, conditions, and what scientists have been able to observe.
01 · Signature adaptation
What does it do?
It shelters in rocky crevices and forages mostly at night. It molts repeatedly, becoming soft and vulnerable until the new shell hardens.
02 · Home coordinates
Where does it live?
Labrador and Newfoundland south to New Jersey, with occasional farther records.
Regions: Northwest Atlantic · North American Atlantic coast
03 · The menu
What does it eat?
It opportunistically crushes or scavenges many bottom-dwelling animals and plants.
Omnivore: crabs, mussels, worms, fish, algae, carrion.
04 · Remember this
Two wow facts
Shell-changing growth
Young American lobsters molt roughly 20 to 25 times before reaching reproductive size.
Sources [1]
Claw specialists
The two claws are different: one crushes hard prey while the other cuts or tears.
Sources [1]