Lobsters live along rocky coastlines of the Mediterranean and north Atlantic. They are crustaceans and related to shrimps, prawns and crabs. Like the shrimps, the female lobsters carry their eggs stuck to their abdomens for about ten months until they hatch. The eggs cling to the mother’s body by means of a sticky substance and the animal also protects them by covering them with her fan-shaped tail.

The lobster has ten jointed legs, including two with strong claws. The spiny lobster has no large claws but used its prickly limbs to defend itself.

The main food of lobsters is fish, alive or dead, and the invertebrates which live at the bottom of the sea. They also occasionally eat sea plants.

Lobsters look like prehistoric monsters that should have died out millions of years ago. They are not dangerous to man and because they are delicious to eat, they are the basis of important fisheries. Usually they are caught in quite shallow water by the use of lobster pots, creels or frames covered with netting.