The reason for that is that this is the ONLY LOBSTER HATCHERY IN CANADA OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. One of the three individual sites of Pictou's
, the hatchery receives egg bearing lobster from fishermen licensed to catch "berried" lobster and raises the lobster which hatch in the hatchery for 14 days. At this age they are given to fishermen to release along the Nova Scotia coast, where they will grow for 6 to 8 years before reaching "catchable" size.
For $8.00 ($6 for seniors, $3 for students, $20 for families) one may tour the hatchery, accompanied by a guide who will offer a running commentary on aspects of the hatchery and the process implemented within to raise tiny lobster. Open to visitors from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, the hatchery is capable of raising and releasing over one million lobster per year in their effort to ensure a viable lobster fishery for Nova Scotia for the foreseeable future.
The Pictou Lobster Hatchery is the only one of its kind in Canada that is accessible to the public, a great resource to the Museum as an educational tool. The facility is also available as a valuable research centre for universities.
The Hatchery's primary goal is to help conserve is the lobster populations in the Northumberland Strait by live releasing Stage IV Lobsters into the Strait. Stage IV Lobsters have a higher likelihood of survival to Adulthood.
In doing so, we will be safeguarding the livelihoods of our coastal communities and preserve our rich coastal heritage.
The Lobster Stock Enhancement Research Project (LSERP) was formed in 2005 in partnership with Northumberland Fisherman’s Association to develop a cost effective commercial lobster hatchery module, and participate in a research and development plan to restock the lobsters in the Northumberland Strait.
HATCHERY PROCESS:
With increased water temperatures the eggs under the lobster's tail become more and more developed.
Once they are fully developed they will hatch as Stage I lobster larvae.
In order to grow, lobsters must shed their hard shell, or molt. After about 3 days, the Stage I larvae molt to Stage II, which are larger and have developed pleopods under their tail.
The larvae molt to Stage Ill at approximately 8 days. They are larger, with a fanned out tail.
For the first three stages, the larvae are very vulnerable and float around in the ocean column.
Only about 0.01% will survive in the wild.
Stage IV is an important transitional stage in the lobster's life cycle. They are now able to actively swim away from predators, and most importantly, they settle to the bottom of the ocean where there is plenty of rock and cobble to hide. They actually look like a little lobster!
It takes 14 days for larvae to reach Stage IV at the hatchery. To get to this stage in the wild, it takes 4-6 weeks, which means more chances to get gobbled up! We gather Stage IVs from the Larvae Tanks, and give them to local fishermen to release in areas where there have been declines in lobster catches. It takes 6 - 8 years for those Stage IVs to become a catch-able size!
Life Cycle of the Lobster
Lobsters with eggs are called berried lobsters. Egg-bearing lobsters are delivered to the hatchery by fishermen with a special license to catch them. Fishermen are not permitted to keep berried lobsters under their normal fishing license.
The lobster gestation period lasts approximately two years. When the berried female releases its eggs, it will bend its tail backwards and fan its swimmerets.
From the Northumberland Fisheries Museum