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SMOOTHTAIL
LOBSTER
A
rare catch!
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On Jan 12, 2002
we were blessed with a new type of lobster. Found this
fellow in 106'. |
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There were a
few things we noticed about this lobster. The blue
colors on the head caught our eyes right away. |
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We noticed how
the spots lined each side of the tail. We noticed that
the legs were striped. |
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We consulted
our bible, Paul Humann's Reef Creature Identification. |
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| "Episodic
recruitment events could also explain the
occurrence
of Panulirus laevicauda in the Caribbean. Panulirus
laevicauda
is
abundant in Brazilian waters but
is
only rarely found in the Caribbean. Evidence for
sporadic
recruitment
of P. laevicauda in the Caribbean was
reported
by Moore (1962), who noted finding a single specimen
of
P. laevicauda near Palm Beach, Florida, during
1949.
Later that same year, P. laevicauda was reported
to
be
nearly as abundant as P. argus, but
in the following
three
years, no P. laevicauda were found at this
location."
http://fishbull.noaa.gov/984/21.pdf
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common answers we heard from the southern Florida crowd
was "Spanish Lobster" and "Brazilian
Lobster." Now, to the untrained eye (you know who I
am talking about) it may be confused with the Spotted
Spiny Lobster aka. Spanish Lobster. I had never heard of
the Brazilian Lobster before. The first thing that
tipped me off was the legs. The Spanish Lobster has
spotted legs, with the exception of the last segment. We
read a little more and find a similar species listed as
Panulirus Laevicauda, or Smoothtail Lobster. We looked
for the Smoothtail
on the internet, and discovered it listed on the Florida
State website. Only one individual who wrote back,
Travis, identified this lobster properly. Thanks Travis,
you are the man. Those who said Brazilian Lobster
were correct also, but I was looking for a more specific
answer. The know it all commercial fisherman who wrote
in had the wrong answer. Imagine that.
Thanks to all that wrote
in with comments. If you catch one of these, you know
that you have a SMOOTHTAIL. Please send us some photos
of the underside of your Smoothtail.
Moose@seahunters.com
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