UNH: Lobster Research

Preliminary Results from 2002

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In the summer of 2002 we had four main goals:

1. Measure the home range of lobsters by tracking them for at least 3 days.

2. Determine if they exhibited homing behavior, naturally and if displaced.

3. Measure the area of bait attraction.

4. Determine if lobsters are nocturnal, diurnal, or neither.

During the past summer we tracked 36 lobsters for approximately 5-8 days each. Of these, 11 escaped from the mesocosm at some point during a typical 7 day trail, but some of these stayed in the area long enough to examine their behavior outside the mesocosm. In general, lobsters outside the mesocosm, that were in range of the telemetry system, moved about the same amount, and with the same general patterns, as they did when they were inside the mesocosm.

Many of the lobsters we tracked had some type of shelter affinity, even though their "shelters" were sometimes just pits in the sand (Figure 1). Occasion they would leave their shelters, move around within the mesocosm, and then return to the same location. Two example of this type of behavior are shown in Figure 3.

The data collected during the summer of 2003 were sufficient to make it possible to calculate the home range for a number of different lobsters. These calculations were performed using the Animal Movement Analysis Extension for ArcViewGIS. This extension was developed by Dr. Hooge and his colleagues. Based on our home range calculations so far, the typical home range of a lobster is 653.5 ± 149.4 m². These home ranges are roughly 26% the area of the entire enclosure (2500 m²). An example showing how a home range was calculated is shown in Figure 4.

Although it is generally accepted that lobsters are nocturnal, the data we have collected so far does not support that view. We often observed lobsters moving about outside shelters during the day and many of the animals we tracked moved the same distance in the day as in the night (Figure 5).

One way we started to determine the area of bait attraction was to fish a single lobster trap, equipped with a transmitter, within the mesocosm. Because the local lobstermen were considerate enough to avoid dropping traps within the mesocosm, our trap was the only source of bait odor. On several occasions we were able to track lobsters approaching the trap (Figure 6) and, because the trap was also equipped with a video camera, we were also able to determine if they entered the trap or simply approached it. Based on these preliminary data lobsters appear capable of sensing a trap from distances of < ~ 10 meters. However, considerably more data are required before we can state with confidence that lobsters are attracted to bait from a certain distance away, taking into account major factors such as current speed and the activity or behavioral state of the lobster.