Order

Decapoda

  Class

Malacostraca

  No. of Genera in Ref.

  No. of Species in Ref.

53

  Environment

Fresh : No | Brackish : No | Marine : Yes

  Aquarium

  First Fossil Record

     

  Remark

Also commonly known as true lobsters. To about 15 cm (Ref. 94508). Body tubular; carapace with well-developed rostrum; antennae longer than body and thread-like, antennal scale, if present, with inner margin unarmed and curved; first 3 pairs of legs with true pincers, first pair of pincers much larger than others; tail fan entirely hardened, telson armed with fixed spines and with posterior margin broadly convex. Colour: variable, depending on the species; some dark blue to black, others pink or red. This family is represented by 3 species in the area of interest, ranging in size from 8 to 65 cm, and occurring from just below the tidal zone to greater than 1 800 m depth. All true lobsters are bottom-dwellers, usually preferring either muddy or rocky substrata which offer shelter. Some species are known to occur on sand or mud bottoms living in self-made burrows. At present, the 2 important commercial species in the eastern central Atlantic are the European lobster, Homarus gammarus and the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus. Although the major fishing grounds for both species are located to the north of the area of interest, these lobsters are also commercially exploited in Moroccan waters. All lobsters of sufficient size are utilized when captured in local fisheries. Nephropsis atlantica occurs in deeper waters (480 to about 1 800 m) than the two species of commercial importance; it has never been caught in great quantities and furthermore is too small (less than 10 cm) to be of significant commercial interest at present. The true lobsters are caught with lobster pots and bottom trawls (N. norvegicus) and mainly marketed fresh (Ref. 104052).

  Etymology

  Division

Marine

  Reproductive guild

  Typical activity level

  Main Ref.

  Coordinator