Boxing matches, love potions and molting shells? They're all part of the world of lobster romance.
Hi, this is Iain MacLeod from New Hampshire Audubon, bringing you Something Wild.
In the undersea world of lobsters, the biggest, baddest bully on the block gets all the babes. One male lobster establishes himself as the top thug, by making the rounds of the local neighborhood every night, beating all the other lobsters up, and kicking them out of their homes for good measure.
Lobster. Courtesy Win Watson, University of New Hampshire.
The females keep a close eye on these boxing matches, identify the dominant male, and when they are ready to mate, they follow him home, intent on seduction.
But the male, being big and a little clueless, is only intent on fighting. So the female needs to administer a love potion to get him in a romantic mood. Oddly enough, she does this by squirting a beguilingly-scented urine from nozzles under her antennae. The dumbfounded male fans the perfume into his apartment and begins to succumb to her irresistable charms. After a few visits, the female can safely push her way into his shelter.
Lobsters can only mate after the female removes her clothes - or molts. When she sheds her hard outer shell, her body is very soft and vulnerable. At this point the male gently mates with her, being very careful not to tear her delicate flesh.
The female stays in the safety of his den for about a week, until her new shell hardens. This is why she chose the biggest bully- not only does he have the strongest genes, but he makes the best bodyguard.
Eventually the couple parts with hardly a backward glance. But the male's den continues to be a busy place. As soon as one female leaves, another one steps in to take her place. All the neighborhood females take their turns with him, until all have molted, mated and gone on their way.
Something Wild is a joint production of New Hampshire Audubon, NHPR and the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. For Something Wild, I'm Iain MacLeod.
