How do you catch lobster? First time!

[diver4jesus]

I was wondering if anybody can give me any advice on how to get lobsters and what is needed.

I have a noose. I will be diving at sebastian inlet!

Thanks sooo much!

 

[montereydivemas]

simply invite any crustaceans you should meet home for a nice garlic butter jacuzzi

 

[The Chairman]

I usually wear gloves, but hardly ever use a tickle stick or noose. I grap them in their lairs and wiggle them out. It ain't pretty, but I have a great time doing it.

 

[notabob]

It depends... Not sure how they do it down in Florida with the wimpy lobsters y'all have, but up here in New England we have real Lobsters. The type that actually fight back. The hunt usually involves carefully stalking and/or taunting your taget lobster, followed by a lightning-fast strike-&-grab at it, followed by an underwater struggle of epic proportions that would make John Woo & Jerry Brookheimer (sp?) proud, during which you twirl around trying to avoid geting your hands chopped off while measuring the caught lobster. When the silt has settled, you determined whether the lobster is legal, and you all still have all your appendages, you bag it. Then you go home and brag to your friends how you survived an attack of the killer 1.5lb monster of the deep

-Roman.

 

[The Chairman]

but they are not called "spiney lobster" for nothing! They have a metric but tonne of hooks, spears and spikes built into their exo-skeleton to impale the novice or careless diver. I had a really large one get all the way through my wetsuit... I needed a transfusion that day! :tease:

 

[Crispy]

D4J,
As a new bug hunter myself, (Second season) One of the best tips given to me was "Don't wait to grab the bug". I often found myself trying to figure out the best way to loop, snare, tickle, or coax the lobster out only to have my buddy just reach down and grab it and put it in the bag.

Dive with gloves, I use 2 pair, one pair I always wear and a second rubberized pair over them. (be careful not to get too big of a glove, they should fit snug but not to tight)

Inevitably you will grab at the antanae or feelers....just happens that way.... be carefull and try not to do this because all you will do is break them off and the bug will get away sans antanae

Be prepared to catch the bug if he decides to turn and swim out of the hole he is in.

Check for eggs first..... no use measuring a captured bug that you can't keep anyways. Maybe the first one you could measure for practice, but it causes unneeded stress to the lobster if you can't or don't intend to keep it.

Above all CHECK YOUR GUAGES !!! do this more often than you would normally. You will be working and probably excited to boot. You will use your gas faster than you think.

also, consider what your after and what you're willing to do for it. Sebastian doesn't have the coral reef system that say West Palm has, but don't feel the need to get that bug so much that you would give up on any good traits of not trashing coral or other marine life to get it.

Hope this helps, and good luck !!!

-Crispy

 

[Wendy]

1. Locate the lobster aka bug

2. I use a tickle stick. Slow stick the tickle stick behind the lobster, try not to touch him with it yet, then tap him on the butt with the stick lightly to coax him out. Have your net ready in the other hand. be patient nad keep tapping his butt.

3. When he is fully out of the hole, net him! He will make a dash for it, so make sure your net is all the way down on the bottom.

4. While holding the net down, grab the bug with your other hand around where the body meets the tail and then with your other hand, let go of the net, and curl the tail under so he can't swim off. Un net him, but be creful to now break legs or his antennas.

5. Now you should be holding your bug with one hand. Check for eggs under the tail. If there are ANY AT ALL, let it go. Take out your guage and measure it.

6. To measure him, put one end of the guage between his eyebrows, there is a hard ridge between them that the guage will catch on and measure down to wear the tail meets the body. If the body is shorter than the guage, even by a little bit, let it go.

7. Put your lobster in your catch bag, make sure its closed and then move on to the next lobster.

8. Once on the boat (or shoer if shore diving) measure the bugs again.

9. To clean them, take a knife and insert it around where the tail meets the body and slice around the inside of the shell towards the body (I like this better than just twisting them off, it gets all the meet out) and then twist off the tail, then break off an antenna about a third of the way down, maybe half way. Then locate the lobsters booty hole. Place the fat end of the antenna into the booty hole just a little bit, and give it a little twist, then pull it out. The intestines should be attached to the spikes on the antenna and pull out all in one piece.

10. Put your tails on ice if you are not going to cook them right there and then. If you are going to freeze them I like to freeze them in some tuperware ful of water, this protects the tails from freezer burn.

Happy hunting.

 

[CBulla]

I used to use explosives, but found out it was illegal... not to mention it gave me a headache after a few times. Now I grab it with my hands or vaccume the floor with the new hoover we bought.

 

[KeyLargoBrent]

"Tail Tamers". It's a rather corny video available in most Florida dive shops that shows and tells you all you need to know about bringin' home the bugs.

I'll second Crispy's recommendation to check your air supply often... mine goes about twice as fast when I'm "on the hunt".

Good luck!

 

[notabob]

Wendy once bubbled...

10. Put your tails on ice if you are not going to cook them right there and then. If you are going to freeze them I like to freeze them in some tuperware ful of water, this protects the tails from freezer burn.

Happy hunting.

Tails?! But the claws are the tastiest parts!! A tail may have a little bit more meat, but it doesn't taste nearly as good... Oh, wait... I forgot

-Roman.