Baby Lobster
Charges should be brought against those people who are involved in the unlawful capture and sale of undersized baby lobsters. This was the suggestion of President of the Antigua and Barbuda’s Fishermen Co-operative Society Gerald Price. Although there have been several stern warnings about the catching of undersized baby lobsters many are still seen being sold on some street corners in St. John’s. Many people have expressed various concerns over this matter including one letter writer who said he has seen these cooked lobsters weighing at the most a quarter of a pound being sold on the street. “Now, I have heard about lobsters, but these in question have hardly advanced beyond the egg stage,” the man said. Vendors are regularly seen at the corners of St John’s and Popeshead streets selling the lobsters. price does not believe that the local fishermen are involved in this illegal practice but suggests that these lobsters might have been smuggled into the country and sold on the street. “Most of the fishermen have a measured rule to tell them what’s undersized,” Price said. He explained to that Antigua Sun that there is also the chicken lobster which is a small breed of lobster which is sometimes found in mangroves and said that people have to be careful not to mix the regular lobster with that breed. “Maybe people use them since they are very delicate but all of our fishermen particularly those belonging to the corps monitor the size of the lobsters to make sure those undersized lobsters or lobsters with eggs are not sold,” Price said. According to Price, once a baby lobster or a lobster with egg is caught, they immediately let it back into the sea. The president said that he is not aware of the fishermen bringing in baby lobsters and if they are seen sold at the corners this complaint should be brought to the attention of the Fisheries officer because it’s a violation of the Fisheries Act. Additionally, the people who sell these baby lobsters should be asked to say where they got them from and then a charge should be brought against the violators. He also told the Antigua Sun that the baby lobsters are the future of the lobster industry for years to come. “They should be allowed to mature and reproduce more lobsters so that our lobster industry can be very fruitful,” Price stated. In Barbuda, the lagoon is the breeding ground for lobsters and the Barbuda Council has issued a warning preventing fishing in this area. According to Price that is where a lot of baby lobsters come from. “This must be coming from another source or the regular fishermen who hunt for lobsters,” Price stated.