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Dieren en planten

Decapods   Lobsters   Common lobster   Norwegian lobster   Marine fauna   Fauna of the sea floor   Communities   

Common lobster

size:

up to 1 meter

weight:

more than 5 kilograms

color:

blue black, sometimes red spots and yellow edges on the shell, red antennae

age:

up to 20 years

food:

omnivore, particularly worms and shells. Also carrion

enemies:

fisheries, seals

reproduction:

sexual, 1 x per year

  • Dut: (gewone) Zeekreeft
  • Eng: common lobster
  • Ger: Hummer
  • Lat: Homarus gammarus
  • Fre: Homard
  • Dan: Hummer
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Common lobster, Ecomare

Common lobster

The common lobster lives the most part of its life alone in a hole or under a stone. It has large claws and as soon as an enemy approaches, it first threatens with its claws. If that doesn't work, it can swim very rapidly backwards. Adult specimen can grow to 1 meter long. However in the Netherlands, they rarely grow so large partially due to overfishing. Common lobsters must shed in order to grow. After discarding their old shell, they definitely need their hole to protect them; their new shell takes a long time to harden, making them easy prey.

  • Distribution and habitat

    The common lobster is found in the North Sea and the Zeeuws delta. In 2006, 10,000 kilograms of lobsters from the Grevelingen and Oosterschelde were traded via the fish auction in Colijnsplaat. It lives mostly in rocky regions, where it can hide under a stone. Sometimes, lobsters are found on sandy bottoms, as long as it can dig itself a hole. Its hole has a front and back entrance so that it can escape from all kinds of situations.