Lobster Season in Long Island Sound Closed for the First Time
For the first time ever, the Long Island Sound will be closed to lobster fisherman. The fishing ban began on September 8 and will continue through November 28 as a part of the Atlantic State Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Lobster Fishery Management Plan, which was approved in November 2011.
The overall goal is to reduce Southern New England lobster exploitation by 10%, and the ban impacts both commercial and recreational fishermen.
The news comes in the wake of a rare, six-clawed lobster discovered off the coast of Hyannis, Massachusetts. This claw deformity has been pegged as a genetic mutation. But—can you eat it? (Not right now…Named Lola, the lobster will be on public display at the Maine State Aquarium in Boothbay Harbor, where she joins other unusual lobsters, including dual-colored crustaceans. “Pinchy would’ve wanted it this way.”)
Also regarding catch limits, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo was in Montauk Thursday to urge the federal government to reevaluate how many fluke New York commercial fishermen and recreational anglers may bring in during a year.