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Lobsters feel pinch of American invasion
It's one of the finest and freshest delicacies that the south coast has to offer.
But our British-born lobsters are under threat - by an aggressive American species.
Scientists believe the invaders may have been reintroduced into the water from restaurants and fish markets by animal-lovers - who were hoping to give the creatures a future other than the dining table.
Fishermen have been stunned as they have caught the alien species off Selsey, West Sussex, which has made its name on fresh, home-grown seafood.
The American lobster, known as homarus americanus, is not native to the area and some carry a disease which can kill the European lobster, homarus gammarus.
The two crustaceans differ only in that the American variety is brown, rather than the blue, and can grow to whopping sizes of up to three stone.
Fisherman Tony Delahunty said five American lobsters had been caught in the past month - and he hadn't caught a single one in his 35 years of lobstering.
The 59-year-old from Selsey, said: 'They're extremely aggressive - more so than the English lobster. When they are in the pot, they are difficult to get out.
'They are adults, so they must have been released from someone who has purchased them.'
Fishermen yesterday met with representatives of the Marine Management Organisation, a government body, to discuss concerns.
Peter Hooley, MMO spokesman, said: 'This is not the beginning of an alien invasion otherwise we would see them right along the coast. But it is a cause for concern.
'We are appealing for people not to release them into the wild. They are damaging the ecosystem.'
Chairman Chris Parry said: 'The MMO marine officers will be in touch with the fishermen and monitoring the situation to see how it develops.'
The bacterial disease, called gaffkaemia or red-tail, cannot be caught by humans, but quickly kills lobsters by increasing stress.
It is most often spread when lobsters cannibalise.
Chef Simon Haynes, from Crab & Lobster Inn, Sidlesham, said Selsey lobster was among the best you could get.
He said: 'It would be a shame if someone is trying to jeopardise our own lobsters' habitat. It would be a shame to lose it.'
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Weather for Portsmouth
Saturday 11 February 2012
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