Random Surprising Things Most People Never Learned About Lobsters (14 items)

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  (#12) Lobster Claws Are Insanely Tough And Can Regenerate

  Lobsters belong to the order Decapoda, which literally translates from Greek as “10 feet.” Like all decapods, lobsters have five pairs of legs. In some lobsters, the front pair of legs has evolved into a pair of durable claws. While not all lobster species have claws (like the Caribbean spiny lobster), the ones that do can be pretty formidable. A lobster can pinch with the force of 1,180 psi, which is stronger than the bite of a dog. 

  Clawed lobsters typically have two different types of claw, one designed to crush and the other to pinch. The cutter claw is smaller than the crusher, which is used to break into hard-shelled prey like clams. In the event a lobster loses one of its claws, the lost limb will simply begin regenerating during its next molting cycle. A one-clawed lobster is typically known colloquially as a cull.
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  (#4) They Can Taste For Prey With Their Legs

  Lobsters have a lot of limbs. Between the claws, legs, antennae, and swimmerets, it’s a wonder they can keep track of them all. Amazingly, the American lobster has two sets of legs that have the unique ability of being able to “taste” for their food. The tasting legs are set just behind the claws and are full of receptors designed to help the lobster locate food in the area. The legs are just a few of the sensory tools that lobsters use to detect prey, the others being their antennae, eyes, and mouths.
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  (#1) Lobster Was Once A Peasant's Food

  Lobsters are probably most famous for being a really expensive delicacy, but that was not always the case. Lobsters were once so abundant in North America the Native Americans would use them as fertilizer, bait, and a good source of protein. They showed the settlers how to cook lobster, a process that included wrapping them in seaweed and steaming them over a fire, which would eventually evolve into the famous New England clambake.

  In the early days of colonization, there were so many lobsters they became the staple food of servants, prisoners, and slaves. People were being fed so much lobster they revolted. Laws were passed limiting the amount of lobster that could be fed to prisoners, and many workers demanded in their contracts they were to only be fed lobster three times a week.
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  (#14) 248 Species Of Lobster Have Been Discovered

  There are a lot of lobsters out there, all with their own unique properties that make them awesome. About 250 species have been identified to date, and they can be divided into two distinct groups; clawed lobsters like the American and European variant, and clawless "rock" lobsters like the Caribbean spiny lobster. These amazing creatures can be found all over the world, in every ocean on the planet. No matter were you are on Earth, these crustacean critters will probably show up on the menu.
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  (#5) When Mating, Females Have All The Power

  Lobster mating is a complicated process, but one that empowers the females. Mating is almost always instigated by the females, who release sex pheromones to inform nearby males they are ready to mate. Lobster males will often fight for a female, and the victor will watch over the her until she completes a molt. To have sex, the females must remove their exoskeleton before mating. Essentially, they strip for their partners. The males will spend up to two weeks protecting their mates from predators while they are naked and vulnerable.

  Sex is no guarantee that the male's genes will be passed on, however. Female lobsters are able to hold onto a male’s sperm for up to 15 months and decide when is the right time to lay their eggs. They can store between 5,000 and 100,000 eggs under their tails until they are ready to hatch.
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  (#8) Lobsters Are Only Red After Being Boiled

  There is a common misconception that all lobsters are bright red. Lobsters can come in a variety of colors, but none of them are all red. Lobster pigmentation can vary between species, but most of them are a dark mix of black, brown, red, and blue. There are some rare genetic defects that can cause extreme color variations, but they are not a species-wide phenomenon. 

  The red coloration is actually a result of the cooking process. Boiled lobsters turn red, and scientists recently discovered the mechanism behind this dramatic transformation. Two chemicals, crustacyanin and astaxantin, are responsible for the pigmentation of lobsters. Crustacyanin is responsible for the bluish tint of living lobsters, while astaxantin causes the red coloration. Crustacyanin overpowers astaxantin in living lobsters, but exposure to intense heat causes a chemical reaction that allows the red pigment to overpower.

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