COMMENT 304511
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2012-08-03 05:07 PM |
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Are you sure they aren't molts?
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COMMENT 304514P
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2012-08-03 05:11 PM |
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*Domoic* acid does seem "demonic" in its lethal effects on marine life. There is a natural tar seep in the cliffs between the Slough outlet and More Mesa Beach, which might acount for some of the beach tar. Perhaps someone will be able to determine whether the lobster deaths are from either of these causes or something else.
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COMMENT 304519
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2012-08-03 05:19 PM |
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those are molts. not dead lobsters.
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COMMENT 304521
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2012-08-03 05:31 PM |
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Definitely molts. I get tar on my feet and/or shoes nearly every time I walk on the beach during the "warmer" months. You are very lucky that this is the first time that you've had tar on your shoes, but the "oil" had nothing to do with the bug shells.
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COMMENT 304546
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2012-08-03 06:25 PM |
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Saw the same thing at Coal Oil Point on monday.
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COMMENT 304554
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2012-08-03 06:42 PM |
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Lobsters have exoskeletons which means they can't grow with their armor squeezing them in so they must discard the old and fill in the new. It's a process called molting. They are very vulnerable after the molt and hide deep in crevices until the new armature toughens up. It's seasonal and it happens en masse. Nothing nefarious or domoic about it.
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COMMENT 304569
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2012-08-03 08:19 PM |
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Thanks Edhatters for the education (and no snarky comments!).
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COMMENT 304570
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2012-08-03 08:27 PM |
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This happens when they try to escape the lobster traps.
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COMMENT 304571
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2012-08-03 08:38 PM |
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If there's meat in the tails, they're dead lobsters. If there isn't meat in them, they're molts. Is that correct?
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COMMENT 304621
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2012-08-04 07:07 AM |
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We can save them. Quick! Boil some water!
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COMMENT 304687
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2012-08-04 09:49 AM |
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I believe they intentionally beached themselves to protest the illegal placement of the artificial reefs at Hendry's.
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BONNER
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2012-08-04 11:54 AM |
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If these were the result of molting, the carapace would be split along
the dorsal median line, as evident in this article: http://www.lobstermanspage.net/lobstrs/molt.html> The witness personally observed many of the tails un-split with full meat inside. He said he wouldn't have been so alarmed if these were just shells, but many were full of meat.
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CHICA
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2012-08-04 12:01 PM |
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Thanks to those that explained this for I too saw the lobsters on a recent walk on Henry's Beach. Also noticed more tar there that wasn't a problem before. Thanks all for the information, and don't you just love Ed Hat!
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COMMENT 304832
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2012-08-04 05:31 PM |
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Saw the same down on Bates Beach south of Carp last Sunday. There was just the usual amount of tar and none of the shells had either meat or a split. They appeared to be intact (less meat) for the most part and there were more tails than heads and pretty much all the same size. My take was someone took the tail meat and discarded the rest. Maybe collateral catch from a trawler??
And I don't think that molting includes the legs & feelers.
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COMMENT 304951
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2012-08-05 10:23 AM |
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Definitely molts! The lobsters back out between the carapace and the tail, often leaving the whole molt intact, even the legs, antennae, and eye sockets. I used to collect whole ones, dry them out slowly, and spray varnish them for displays. The fact that you're seeing them from Carp to Goleta confirms this. As for bycatch from trawlers? C'mon, trawlers work sand bottom; lobsters live in relatively shallow structure. If a trawler were to drag over a lobster-holding structure (reef), it would likely damage or lose its net if not risk sinking the boat entirely.
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COMMENT 305159P
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2012-08-06 11:14 AM |
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We don't call them soft-shell lobsters, but soft-shell crabs are crabs that have recently molted like the lobsters that left these shells. They're weak and vulnerable until the new shell underneath hardens - their muscles need a hard shell for them to move well.
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