1 in 100 million albino lobster caught — and released in Maine

Nature is so weird and wonderful.

Take this white, nearly translucent lobster.

The Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association shared a photo the rare creature caught by Alex Todd of Chebeague Island, Maine.

“A normal lobster gets its color by mixing yellow, blue, and red protein pigments. Through different genetic mutations you can get a blue, yellow, or red (uncooked) lobster. You can also get strange mixtures of those colors as well,” the association noted. ” This lobster probably has a genetic condition called Leucism which isn’t a total loss of pigment (which would make it an albino) but instead a partial loss. This is why you can still see some hints of blue on the shell and color on the eyes.”

But still a bizarre white lobster.

And even if you’re not into fishing, it’s definitely interesting.

The University of Maine’s Lobster Institute counts curious colours.

Lobsters can also be red (uncooked), yellow, orange, calico or split orange and brown. All of those are rare. But the rarest of them all is a crystal, or albino lobster. The ocean may spit up one in 100 million of those.

“Researchers and marine experts agree, only albino lobsters are rarer than the orange-brown split-colored lobster,” the institute explains. “The odds of finding an albino lobster are one in 100 million lobsters. Yet, people do find them. One in 100 million. That’s a long way from the one in two million blue lobsters that appear in nature.”

So don’t worry, this lobster’s goose wasn’t cooked.

Its tail had been notched. That means it is an egg-bearing female and must remain in the ocean for conservation.

And Todd, he’s a pretty interesting cat.

You can learn more about him here.

Photo Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association/Facebook

About the author

Recovering newspaper reporter.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.