The Breakers: History and Info on Lobstering

History of Lobster Fishing

Long ago, before traps were used, lobsters were fished from the shallow waters by spearing or gaffing. Fishermen hunted for lobsters by torch light on calm evenings, spearing them as they crawled around in search of food. During the day they would spread a slick of oil over the surface of the water darkening the water below, and then throw out cod heads for bait. The lobsters would swarm around the bait and the fishermen would spear them. Although there was no real commercial market for lobster at this time, some fishermen did sell their catch to make money. Because the lobsters were worth more if there were no spear marks in them, the fishermen began using wire cages to trap the animals so they could get a better price. These wire cages were adapted from the Europeans who used them to catch crayfish and Spiny lobsters. There was such an abundance of lobster long ago that it was not a valued commodity and was considered a poor man’s food.

Lobsters were so plentiful that Native Americans used them to fertilize their fields and to bait their hooks for fishing and in colonial times were considered "poverty food." They were harvested and served to children, to prisoners, and to indentured servants, who exchanged their passage to America for seven years of service to their sponsors. In Massachusetts, some of the servants finally rebelled. They had it put into their contracts that they would not be forced to eat lobster more than three times a week.

It wasn't until the second half of the 19^th Century that the lobster industry began to flourish.

History of Lobster Fishing in Maine

Today's Maine lobster fisherman has a much more efficient process in place than those of the lobstermen of the early 1800's, who stood at the water's edge hoping to snatch the clawed crustaceans by hand.
Demand and technology have greatly influenced the lobster industry over the years. The Gulf of Maine Research Institute and the Lobster Institute provide an interesting insight into the industry's timeline.
1836 - To meet a buying demand that surpassed the storage capacity of lobster boats, Burnham & Morrill Company (the company we know today for B&M baked beans) began canning lobster meat. Distributing canned lobster meat was easier than shipping live lobster, and because of its popularity, canned lobster quickly became more expensive to purchase than fresh lobster.
1850's - Trapping began as wooden lobster traps came into existence.
1875 - Vinalhaven, Maine became home to the state's first lobster pound, with other pounds quickly being introduced.
1930's - Up until this time, the primary repository for hauled lobster had been "smacks" - small sailing vessels containing a tank with drilled holes that allowed for water circulation. During the 1930's smacks were phased out and replaced by land-based lobster buyers who acted as agents between harvesters and people wishing to buy their lobster.
1939-1945 - During the Second World War lobster was not a rationed commodity, and thus gained popularity as a protein-rich food.
1942 - The Marine Fisheries Commission was formed to help coordinate the efforts of interstate and federal fishing regulations.
1950-1969 - After a post-war decline in the purchase of lobster, per capita consumption increased dramatically. Lobster prices rose higher than the rate of inflation, increasing profits and making Maine lobster fishing a more lucrative business.
1970's - Wire mesh parlor traps were introduced, replacing wooden parlor traps.
1987 - The Lobster Institute was started "by industry associations in partnership with the University of Maine". The Institute's functions include communications, outreach, research and educational programming.
2004 - The Maine lobster fishing industry reported that nearly 71 million pounds of lobster were caught. Valued at over $285 million this was the largest Maine lobster catch to date.

Lobster Fishing Equipment

A lobster trap or lobster pot is a portable trap which traps lobsters or crayfish and is used in lobster fishing. A lobster trap can hold several lobsters. Lobster traps are constructed of wire and wood. An opening permits the lobster to enter a tunnel of netting. Pots are usually constructed in two parts, called the "chamber" or “kitchen”, where there is bait, and exits into the “parlor”, where it is trapped from escape. Lobster pots are usually dropped to the sea floor about a dozen at a time, and are marked by a buoy so they can be picked up later.

Lobster traps are also known as lobster pots and the deployment of lobster pots has always been the time-honored way for the lobstermen. Harvesters must build lobster pots according to certain rules and regulations that have been created to protect lobster population. Traps or pots can be circular, rectangular or even other shapes. The frames are made with with a very rigid, strong wire mesh (traditional traps are made with wood in a curvature shape). The traps also consist of a baited area following funnels shaped from twine and with openings allowing the lobsters to enter. Escape areas or vents are also placed for the process of filtering out miniature adults and early stage lobsters.

Traditional Wooden Lobster Pot

Wire Lobster Pot

Lobster Pots that have been set in the water. Note how they are tied together and the buoy marks where the pots are located.

Lobster harvesters operate in the traditional ways of lobstering passed down from generations on. Asides from the implementation of growing technologies, the methods of harvesting have hardly changed.

Lobsters are generally drawn towards rocky and murky surfaces of the ocean floor and these are usually the ideal placement of the lobster pots. Traps are placed along the ocean floors at different depths during the seasons. During the Summer and Fall the traps are set at depths anywhere from 3 fathoms to 40 fathoms (a fathom is equal to 6 feet). During the Winter and Spring the traps are set in deeper, warmer waters for fishing at depths of 50 fathoms or more. Lobstermen may set and check more then 250 to 300 traps per day, and may score as many as 30 or more lobsters each. The number of lobster caught depends on many factors including the size of the lobster, design of the trap, location of the lobster pots, but for the most part on weather conditions. The method used for tracking and separating these lobster pots is to use marked buoys. The lobster buoys are constructed out of materials, such as wood and durable plastic. Lobster buoys are uniquely decorated for easy tracing and identification of the lobster pots used among the different harvesters.

The lobster industry implements the use of new technology with one concept in mind that is to be eco-friendly. New biodegradable materials are used for parts of the lobster pots in the event of losing the pots. Advanced detection equipments are used for locating optimal position for and retrieval of the lobster pots. This is the reality for those in the lobster industry, this is a way of life in which they live and it is to be protected and celebrated.

Glossary of Lobster Fishing Vernacular

Berried female - also called a spawning female, a female carrying eggs
Bug - slang for lobster
Buoy - (pronounced bü-ē) a rounded cork shaped object that is usually made of styrofoam that can float. Buoys are tied with rope to traps to mark where they are in the water. Each fisherman has a particular color scheme for their buoys so that they can distinguish whose is whose.
Brine - salt water
Canners - small lobsters, weighing 175 to 450 kg (approximately ½ to 1lb)
Carapace - hard shell covering the lobster’s cephalothorax
Cephalothorax - the fused segments of the head and thorax
Cull - a lobster with one or no claws. Normally sold at a lower price
Districts - regions in Atlantic Canada where lobster fishing is open at specific times of the year (seasons). The division into districts allows control of the harvest, insuring the highest quality.
Deck-hand - also called a fishermen’s helper or hired hand. A person responsible for emptying traps, baiting, stacking and dropping traps and cleaning up. Basically a person who does everything but pilot the boat and haul the traps.
Gaff - a long, straight, wooden pole with a hook on the end that is used to catch buoys.
Hard shell - a lobster whose shell has fully hardened after molting. Hard-shelled lobsters yield 50-60 % more meat than soft-shelled or shedders.

Hauler - an electronic device that is located at the stern of the boat and hauls traps out of the water.
LFA - lobster fishing area
Live-tank - a box-like structure where the live lobsters are placed on board. Usually located in the middle of the deck. Ocean water is pumped in to the tank.
Markets - a size category for lobsters weighing 450kg to 1.5 kg (1 to 3 lbs).

Metal gauge - a device used to measure the carapace of a lobster. It is placed at the eye socket and measures down the middle. If the carapace of the lobster does not fit between the jaws of the device then the lobster is not of legal size.
Molt - when a lobster sheds its shell so that it can grow larger
Pound - a storage area for holding live lobster
Roe - unfertilized egg mass of a female. It is bright red when cooked.
Seasons - specific periods in the year when a particular area or region can be fished
Shedders - lobster in the molt or soft-shell stage of growth
Tomalley - green-colored liver of a lobster
Trap - a wooden or wire cage that is baited and used to catch lobster.
Trawl - a string of traps connected by a line with two buoys marking each end. Traps are tied along the line. Three, five, seven and ten-trap trawls are common.

Tray - also called a ‘tote’, a plastic bin that holds bait, lobster, or anything on the boat that needs stowing.
V-notch - a small v shape cut in the second left flipper to mark breeding females. V-notched females, if found, must be thrown back; regardless of whether they are carrying eggs at the time or not.
Washboard - the rail of the boat where the traps are laid after being hauled.
Wharf - the docks where the boats are moored.

About the Lobsters

Spiny Lobsters - Unclawed Lobster

The spiny lobster, often called a rock lobster because of its tendency to live in rock crevices, or among coral reefs, is distinguished by a bumpy, spiny shell, long antennae, AND...

Although like its clawed counterpart, it has five sets of legs...

...the spiny lobster does not have a larger, meat filled set of claws.

What the spiny lobster lacks in claw meat, it tends to make up for by having more meat in its tail than the clawed lobster.

Spiny lobsters that are harvested off the coasts of California, Florida, the Caribbean Islands, and in the Mediterranean Sea, and the South Pacific may be marketed as warm water tails, while cold water tails come from the lobsters caught near Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea and South Africa.

Clawed Lobster

The most popular lobster, the clawed lobster, has ten legs, two of which are large claws - a crusher claw and a ripper (pincher) claw. Because of the amount of tender meat stored within them these claws are precious!

Typically a cold water lobster, the clawed lobster is caught in the northeastern AND the northwestern Atlantic Ocean.

The American Lobster (homarus americanus), also known as the Northern lobster and the Maine lobster is found off the shores of North America (seasonally as far south as North Carolina) and the Canadian provinces. With meatier claws and a wider tails it is usually larger than the European lobster.

The European Lobster (homarus gammarus) is caught in the northeastern Atlantic waters, from the coasts of Norway to as far south as Morocco. Although smaller than the American lobster it is a bit more expensive.