A Day in the Life of a Lobster

Lobsters have been fitted with hi-tech tracking devices monitoring their every movement.

The Deep in Hull has launched its latest conservation study, attaching the devices on to the backs of lobsters to monitor their behaviour.

The study is part of the North Eastern Sea Fisheries Committee’s (NESFC) lobster population dynamics research and has been introduced in collaboration with the Yorkshire and Humberside Seafood Group and The University of Wales.

It is hoped the devices will provide scientists with an insight into the species’ behavioural patterns.

Nick Fleming, a marine biologist for the NESFC, said: "This has never been done before anywhere in the world.

"It is essentially a trial period to test the equipment and it will last for a week.

"We have already tested it in a normal tank and made some observations of the species already.

"But this is a step-up from that. The North Sea Tank here at The Deep is very similar to the lobsters’ own environment.

"It is a simulated wild aquarium that allows us to take the study one step closer to using these devices in the wild.

"We are a long way from that at the moment, so we must take things one step at a time.

"At the moment, we must check that everything works and then there will be logistics problems to iron out after that, such as how to retrieve the equipment when we want it back.

"But that is the eventual aim of this study – to take it into the wild."

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