Lobsters Don't Live Forever

Some of you may have come across this meme at some point:

Because of this picture, many people are believing that lobsters live forever and just keep growing. I've heard more than one person saying how awesome it would be if there was this sci fi-like, gigantic, monstrous lobster that lived on the ocean floor and was hundreds of years old and was king of the ocean. Well, I hate to rain on several peoples parades, but these bad boys don't live forever. BUT BUT BUT they do, however, keep growing until they die. Still pretty neato.

Lobsters have a hard shell that is inelastic and therefore must be shed in order for growth. Lobsters molt (the process of  preparing, undergoing, and recovering from shedding their shells) several times a year when they are younger, but decrease in the amount of times as they age and grow. The largest lobster ever caught on record was in 1977 off of the coast of Nova Scotia that weighed 44 pounds and was about 3.5 ft. long. Dang yo, that's one super-sized crustacean! 

One of the reasons why people may think lobsters live forever is because they don't age the same as other animals. They don't weaken with age and don't lose their ability to reproduce. They will just keep on molting and growing and molting and growing. However, this does not mean that they live forever. If they aren't caught to become someone's fancy dinner, they will die due to natural causes. Mostly because they run out of energy to molt, and not being able to molt leads to fatal diseases. 

National Geographic estimates that the average lobster in the wild will live about 50 years.

[In 2012, the largest lobster caught in Maine history was 27 pounds (pictured above).]

So, the lobster isn't immortal. Kind of a disappointment, I know. It would be pretty awesome to think that there is one the size of an SUV just wandering around the ocean floor somewhere. But they're still pretty cool none the less. 

Flamingo Tongue Snail

Wow. Not gonna lie. It was difficult to figure out what to do for my first post, but then I figured it really didn't matter. BUT I decided that I wanted it to be something pretty to get your attention, so I chose the Flamingo Tongue Snail.  I know what you may be thinking, "when did a snail qualify as being pretty?". I don't really feel like I need to explain it to you. I mean, just look at those colors! Wowza!

Isn't it beautiful?!

Anyway, this bad mamma jamma lives in the Caribbean and in the western Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina down to northern Brazil.

They are only about an inch long. They live mainly on fan coral, and actually feed on the toxic coral. And not only do they suffer no harm, it actually incorporates the fans' venom and becomes toxic itself. Whaaaaaat?! Shut yo mouth! Good news though, with time, the coral that has been fed on will regenerate because it only eats through to the coral skeleton. They are pretty smart creatures when it comes to feeding. They are smart enough to know not to graze their host coral to death; instead, they transfer host periodically by crossing over to the next coral.

You see those wonderful yellow and black markings? Those colors are not part of the shell, but it is actually live mantle tissue which is covering the shell. Divers are often attracted to these colorful creatures and will take them as souvenirs, but will be disappointed because the shell itself is an apricot color- it is the snail living inside the shell that produces those amazing patterns. When the snail dies, the color goes with it. Sadly, these little creatures are over-collected and are becoming less common in highly visited coral reefs. So if you ever see one please leave it be!

Tasty Treats

This girl, right here, loves the ocean. I'm so fascinated by it. Maybe it's because we know so little about it and what it contains. OR maybe it's because it's like a whole other planet below the surface. OR maybe I'm a daughter of Poseidon. Who knows?! It lures me in like an unsuspecting pandalid shrimp that is hypnotized by the illuminated esca dangling from a hungry anglerfish. Those tricksy anglers!!
Maybe one day I'll make a career involving the ocean and doing what I love. I'd love to go back to school someday to help in the pursuing of the aforementioned career. But sadly school cost money, something I currently don't have much of in my possession.

Anyway, getting back on track. This blog is pretty much about anything I find fascinating about the ol' big blue. I will do my best to make sure the information I provide is correct. I have not had proper education on the subjects, but the internet is a wonderful, magical place that can be used for learning. So if you know I have made any mistakes about anything, please let me know so I can correct it. Also, if you have sources about anything I need to correct, I would love for you to share that too.
So please, sit back and enjoy a big bowl of candy filled with information and fun about what our world's oceans contain!