Lobster Monitoring and Assessment
This lobster program is the longest running, on-going, catch and effort study within the Department. In addition to lobster landings statistics, this program has been collecting statistical information on the commercial and natural population of lobsters along the Maine coast for over 40 years. The program collects valuable data on lobster catch as well as discards and bycatch which are directly used in the lobster stock assessment as well as in other studies.
- 2023 monitoring program update & results (PDF file, 4 pages)
- Sea Sampling Information Brochure (PDF file, 2 pages)
- Program information about each lobster life stage and relevant surveys
- Latest lobster stock assessment and peer review, c/o ASMFC (near bottom of page)
- Request data or specimens from DMR lobster surveys
Lobster Life History Research
- Female lobster size at maturity studies
- Larval lobster surveys
- Large lobster molting study (under construction)
- More information will be coming here soon. In the meantime, please contact Heather Glon.
DMR Lobster Lab Protocols and Image Based Guides
Please see the attached guides below for DMR’s protocols and image-based guides for ovarian, cement gland, and setogenic staging. The images for these guides were generated during DMR’s 2018-2023 female size at maturity research (Waller et al., 2019;2021) and the development of the guides was funded by the 2020 Sea Grant American Lobster Research Program.
Please credit the Maine Department of Marine Resources when sharing or using images from these protocols and guides. For suggested updates or other information, contact jesica.d.waller@maine.gov
- Link to ovarian staging guide (PDF, 6 pages)
- Link to cement gland staging guide (PDF, 5 pages)
- Linkt to setogenic/pre-molt staging guide (PDF, 5 pages)
Image: DMR lobster lab, 2019
Other DMR Lobster Research
- Vertical Line Requirements and North Atlantic Right Whale Entanglement Risk Reduction (Amer. Fisheries So. article)
- DMR Lobster Research Collaborative
- Historical DMR research publications
- Lobster tagging and Rewards raffle
Contacts
Kathleen Reardon - Senior Lobster Biologist, Monitoring and Assessment
Jesica Waller - Division Director for the Division for Biological Monitoring and Assessment
Heather Glon - Senior Lobster Biologist, Lobster Life History
Robert Russell - Settlement Survey Coordinator
Erin Summers - Whale Take Reduction
Kristyn Kleman - Sea Sampling and Ventless Trap Coordinator