Rare haul: Blue lobster caught in Massachusetts

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Extremely rare blue lobster caught in Massachusetts

The odds of finding a blue lobster are one in two million

You could call it shell shock. A rare blue lobster has been hauled up by a man from Massachusetts, and instead of being cooked, it may end up on display in an aquarium.

Wayne Nickerson caught the lobster on Monday, according to the Associated Press, who reported that his wife, Jan Nickerson, has named the crustacean Bleu. Not only that, Nickerson has actually reportedly caught a blue lobster before.

That’s very uncommon. According to the Lobster Institute at the University of Maine, blue lobsters are estimated to occur just one in two million times. Why the blue color? It’s caused by a genetic defect, the institute explains, which creates an abundance of a protein that causes the blue hue.

Blue lobsters are rare, but rarer still are lobsters that are bright red (before being cooked), yellow, or even calico, according to the institute.

Jan Nickerson said that the lobster is in a holding tank, and would like to give it to the New England Aquarium in Boston. The aquarium’s media relations director told the Associated Press that the lobster was “just spectacular,” and expressed interest in taking in the crustacean, if space permits.

Bleu will hopefully have a better fate than a lobster named Larry. That very large lobster— estimated to be 15 pounds— was nearly made into a meal at a Florida restaurant, but an animal rescue group and local businesses arranged to have him donated to the Maine State Aquarium in July.

But Larry did not survive the journey from Florida to Maine, according to the Portland Press Herald.

Follow Rob Verger on Twitter: @robverger