News Release

Tagging Study Tracking Lobster Movement

Moncton -- This spring and summer, more than 1,500 lobsters were tagged in the Northumberland Strait between New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. The goal is to answer a question that has both the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) lobster biologists and fishers scratching their heads. In the early spring, lobsters are not easily seen in the Northumberland Strait, whereas in the fall, large numbers of lobsters are regularly hauled up in lobster traps. The question on everyone's mind is where do they go?

"The Northumberland Strait is a unique area and we aren't sure if the lobster are in deeper water, or simply in another area altogether," says Marc Lanteigne, the DFO lobster biologist in charge of the project. "We would really like to find out how far these lobsters move in the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. Knowing more about lobster movement could give us a better understanding of the annual and seasonal fluctuations in commercial catches."

The tagging study currently involves approximately 800 fishers from New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia in Lobster Fishing Area 25 (LFA 25). The groups involved are: DFO, the Maritime Fishermen's Union (MFU), Orion Seafood Group and Dalhousie University. By tagging lobsters and recording where they are recaptured, researchers and fishers will have a better idea of how far the Northumberland lobsters move, and how and when they grow.

Lobsters are tagged by placing a specially designed blue or white plastic tag between their body and tail. Each tag is printed with a unique number and stays attached even if the lobster molts. (Photos available.)

Any fisherman catching a tagged lobster is asked to record the date, position, water depth, tag number and colour, and the size of the lobster. Undersize and egg bearing female lobsters (tagged or not) must be thrown back, while commercial-sized tagged lobsters may be kept and sold as usual (once the information is recorded). To report a tagged lobster or to find out more about the program there is a toll-free number: 1-800-718-3474.

In preparation for this study, all lobster licence holders in LFA 25 have received information by mail.

"In a tagging study like this one, the participation of fishermen is crucial so we can collect the information about lobster movement and growth that DFO, the industry and the fishermen themselves would like to have," says Lanteigne.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Internet: : http://www.glf.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/comm-comm/nr-cp/index-e.html