European lobster
The European lobster has been found from the Mediterranean Sea to Northern Norway and west to the Shetland Island and western Ireland. It is usually found in shallow waters less than 40 m deep, where it is night active and shelter in burrows during daytime. Their preferred habitat is moderately exposed areas with a complex bottom substrate of a mixture of sand and rocks. The lobster has a wide diet, hunting live prey and scavenging on dead organisms.
The European lobster, is among the larger crustaceans naturally occurring in European shallow waters, and can be up to 50 cm in total length with weight up to 10 kg, although specimens over 35 cm is rare. The first pair of walking legs are well developed claws, while the next two pairs have small claws. The long antennae are used for probing the near surroundings. The most important sense is olfaction and the shorter, double-set of hairy antennae are the lobster’s nose. Also the fan of short hair on the tail and walking legs are finely tuned smell and taste receptors. In Norwegian waters lobsters are usually black, but bluish, brownish, reddish and white lobsters can occasionally be seen, often with white markings near the eyes and mouth parts.
