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California
Spiny Lobster
October
- March
“California Spiny Lobster range from
Monterey to Baja California, growing to legal size (3 ¼ inches
along the carapace) in about 10 years for females, 11 years for
males. Larval lobster drift in the ocean for 18 months and molt 12
times before they settle on the bottom.
Adult lobster shed their shell annually.
Lobsters like to hide in reefs and rockpiles.
Spiny lobster have distinct migration patterns, or “crawl
cycles,” moving to shallow water in summer to lay eggs and molt,
and then to deep water in winter to mate.
California fishermen have been trapping spiny
lobsters since the 1800’s. Special
escape ports built into traps (mandatory since 1976) allow undersize
lobster to escape. With
open season from October to March, California’s lobster fishery
has produced a sustained yield exceeding 500,000 pounds per year for
the past 15 years.”
Provided
by the California Seafood Council, “California Seafood, Taste the
Tradition” 1993
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