On the afternoon of February 22, the Institute of Oceanography – Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa) announced that the orange-yellow Canadian lobster displayed at the institute molted on the night of February 21. The nearly intact lobster shell will be sent for processing.
This lobster was donated to the Institute of Oceanography by Royal Seafood International Trading Company (Ho Chi Minh City) in July 2022. The orange-yellow lobster measures 55cm in length and weighs nearly 2kg, imported from Canada to Vietnam.
Visitors enjoy touching the shell of the mutated lobster – (Photo: MINH CHIEN).
Mr. Ho Son Lam, Deputy Head of the Marine Organism Breeding Technical Department at the Institute of Oceanography, stated that Canadian lobsters (scientific name: Homarus americanus) are primarily distributed in the Atlantic Ocean – North America. Typically, lobsters are dark blue or green.
However, due to genetic mutations, some lobsters exhibit colors such as yellow, orange, and jade green. The likelihood of finding an orange-yellow lobster in the wild is extremely rare because such bright and eye-catching colors make them easy targets for predators.
After molting, the lobster is quite weak and requires careful care.
According to some studies, yellow lobsters result from a rare genetic mutation that is not yet fully understood, while orange lobsters are due to a mutation in the protein associated with pigmentation. Most orange lobsters are described as “tricolor,” exhibiting a mix of orange and black. However, these studies are on a small scale since lobsters with such colors are very rare in the wild.
“This lobster molted last night, and whether it retains its orange-yellow color in the next molt may depend on the genetic mutation related to pigment. After molting, the lobster currently has a very thin and weak shell as it expended a lot of energy during the molting process, making it very vulnerable in the wild. Therefore, this is the stage when lobsters are most susceptible to attacks,” Mr. Lam explained.
“To ensure the health of the lobster, the technical staff is currently supplementing its diet with nutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, etc. Typically, lobsters molt once a year. After the molting process, lobsters significantly increase in weight, and this change is easily noticeable to the naked eye.”
The lobster shell has red and black algae growth.
Excited to have their photo taken with the lobster’s shell, visitor Le Ho Thien Nga (from Vung Tau) shared: “This is the first time I’ve seen a lobster shell that is yellow like this; it looks very unusual. I hope the Institute of Oceanography will create a specimen so that visitors can not only see the live lobster in the tank but also view and even touch the orange-yellow lobster specimen to experience it.”
