Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
1-in-30 million yellow lobster turns up near Nantucket
The lobster, Yellonardo De Pinchy, is released back into the wild.
While hauling traps off the coast of Nantucket last Friday, a lobsterman and his crew spotted something out of the ordinary – a yellow lobster.
At first, Jim Sjolund, the captain of the Nantucket lobster boat Julie Alice, thought the yellow was a scalp fish. It wasn’t until his foreman started to get excited, saying, “Look at this!” that he realized the find.
“Oh wow, that’s a lobster,” Sjolund said. “I knew they came in different colors, but I didn’t know” how rare they were.
It wasn’t until he returned to the island, where there was cell service and he could do some research, that he knew how remarkable it was.
Advertisement:
“I looked online, and it’s 1 in 30 million,” said Sjolund. “I wish I caught the other 30 million lobsters instead,” he joked.
The University of Maine backs up Sjolund’s claim, making them rarer than blue lobsters.
Previously, lobsters have been found in orange, blue, calico, two-toned, and even cotton candy shells.
Andrew Goode, lead administrative scientist for the American Lobster Settlement Index at the University of Maine, told the Associated Press that lobsters’ colors can vary due to genetic and dietary differences.
Lobsters typically have a mottled brown appearance and turn orange-red when boiled for eating.
Goode warned that there is no definitive source on the occurrence of lobster coloration abnormalities.
Advertisement:
Marine sciences professor Markus Frederich of the University of New England in Maine told the AP that the best estimates about lobster coloration are based on fisheries sources. However, he said, “No one really tracks them.”
Frederich said that cited figures, such as 1 in 1 million for blue lobsters, should not be treated as rock-solid. His team is working on making it more reliable.
In the meantime, Goode said that when it comes to the rare colored lobsters, “anecdotally, they don’t taste any different either.”
As for the yellow lobster found off Nantucket, Sjolund said he brought it to Sayle’s Seafood last week on Washington Street with the rest of his catch. However, the yellow lobster was not for sale.
After checking the island’s aquarium, he learned they already had a 7 lb female yellow lobster. In the past, the aquarium tried to put a male in her tank, but after he shed, she ate him. So, they weren’t going to try that again, he said.
As he tried to figure out what to do with the lobster, he began soliciting ideas on Instagram, looking for the perfect name. Some names included Butter, Golden Ticket, Cheeto, and Sunny. But ultimately, Sjolund landed on Yellonardo De Pinchy.
Advertisement:
On Friday, the yellow lobster was released back into the ocean, east of Nantucket, where he was caught.
“We gave him a snack and set him on his merry way,” said Sjolund. “Maybe I’ll catch him again.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com