Keeping Lobsters Alive

[wreckedinri]

I store them in melted butter. They don't last very long, but they don't get a chance to spoil either.

Terry

Be sure to wash them thoroughly in boiling water!

 

[pdive]

What is the best way to keep your bugs alive and fresh between dives? I would imagine putting them into a cooler or bucket with some salt water and sea grass/weed would work. I haven't got so lucky yet, but hope to! Thanks for the input.

LobstaMan

I would think a guy named "LobstaMan" wouldn't have to ask such questions

 

[Hank49]

I once made the mistake of trying to keep lobsters alive in a cooler full of salt water. Not only did the lobsters almost die, but carrying a cooler full of water up the beach to my truck was quite a workout.

I've found ice works great. If I don't have any ice, I'll pack them in wet seaweed until I can get some ice.

Even if you aerate a cooler full of water, the NH3 waste of the bugs will likely foul the water in a few hours and weaken or kill the lobsters. A live well that flushes new water through on a constant basis should work though.
I don't have a lot of experience with lobsters but I have shipped a lot of live shrimp around. The wet seaweed or even saw dust I've heard, works really well. A company was shipping live Karuma shrimp to the $100 per lb market in Tokyo using wet saw dust or wood chips. Apparently as long as the gills stay wet and cool, they're good for a day or so even sealed up.

 

[Soggy]

Lobsters will last for days in a brown paper bag in the fridge. And they'll be fiesty when you take them out.

 

[LobstaMan]

I would think a guy named "LobstaMan" wouldn't have to ask such questions

Point taken. It's not so much that I'm a lobster expert, but that I sort of look like a lobster(think red, not eight-legged w/ claws). My nickname in grade school was 'Lobster'. I also had the nickname of 'Pumpkinhead'(think orange), but that name would have been more appropriate if I was posting on a gardening message board. This thread is also a bit seasoned and I've got some learnin' in me since then.

LobstaMan

PS I will not last very long in paper bag inside the fridge.

 

[paulthenurse]

Just curious-- how do people reconcile your love for the ocean and its living things with torturing living beings by locking them up in ice for days and let them die an agonizing death that lasts for days? If you must catch and eat creatures, you should kill them fast and humanely.

Hummm, who knew that trolls were vegitarians?

I guess you learn something new every day.

PTN