Canada's Lobster Eldorado

the lobster is an animal mainly active at night. Generally, it takes shelter, in crevices or under rocks during the day and provides for its needs in depths of less than fifty meters. In Canada, the southern St. Lawrence and the waters of Nova Scotia are teeming with lobsters. Quebec and New Brunswick are also places rich in these crustaceans.

In Quebec, lobster is an essential spring culinary product of the celebration. It is very popular with Quebecers. Lobsters are served in restaurants. According to reality and historical facts, the moment of the arrival of the first lobsters on the market in May constitutes an event of great importance in Quebec supermarkets. This moment features lobster everywhere: at gatherings, at community dinners and at festivals. Like other crustaceans, the lobster has a stiff shell or exoskeleton, brown to olive green in color, sometimes identifiable by its numerous black, orange or red speckles. Lobsters can live longer and weigh more than eighteen kilograms. Its length can reach up to 60 cm. It has five pairs of legs, which are used to move, including the chelipeds or large claws, as well as two pairs of antennae. The hinged appendages on its abdomen are often used to carry eggs to the female. Its tail includes four fins that are otherwise called uropods and is formed from the telson. The lobster changes throughout its life, usually as the water temperature increases.

The more or less noticeable increase in water temperature promotes the rise of lobster from the American coast to Canada. Admittedly, Anticosti Island has never enjoyed a reputation for the quality of its lobster fishing. But, from a few years, this sector becomes a gold mine for the fishermen who venture there. For a few fishermen from the Îles-de-la-Madeleine, the Gaspé and the Lower North Shore, Anticosti becomes an island full of treasures. According to statistics on fisheries and oceans in Canada, Anticosti Island is on the way to becoming the new El Dorado for lobsters in this country. Indeed, the number of lobsters caught by the fishermen who operate in this place is four times more than that caught ten years ago. And a question arises: is our ecosystem able to support this large quantity of lobsters? Researchers have provided many reasons for this rise. Some of them confirm that the phenomenon linked to the warming of the waters of the Gulf may be the cause. Again according to the opinions of the researchers, the lobster does not walk on the ocean floor, from New England to Canada. The phenomenon is explained rather by the dispersion, generated by the marine currents, of the larvae of lobsters almost everywhere at the time of reproduction. However, the northern part of the gulf provides very little heat to ensure the survival of young lobsters.

According to the industry, the quality of the lobster fishery in southwestern Nova Scotia is not favorable for a third of the fishing season. According to the explanations provided by some fishermen, it seems that the shells of recently caught lobsters contain little flesh. In reality, the thing is no longer the same as before; twenty or thirty years ago, their shell was always hard and contained a sufficient quantity of meat.

The culinary experience offered by fresh lobster is incomparable: choosing a lobster, enjoying its flesh which has a pleasant flavor, bathing it in melted butter... In New Brunswick, all seafood products that bring great taste pleasure are On the menu. In addition, New Brunswick is one of the exporters of marine animals consumed by humans in Canada. In rural coastal areas, the activity of catching crustaceans, fish or shellfish for commercial profit is a fundamental part of the province's market environment. Along the coast, you will discover villages, fishermen, friendly and hospitable.

There is excitement in the air as the fishing season kicks off. It differs according to the regions of the province. You are advised to inquire if you want to become a participant in the festivities.

Enjoy a tasty lobster to start your adventure in Shediac, an attractive little corner of paradise, soothed by the sea of New Brunswick's eastern coast. The small town of Shediac enjoys a reputation for its fishing, its famous lobster festival, its processing plants, its ponds intended to keep lobsters alive.

A large quantity of lobsters are found in Blanc-Sablon, in the easternmost municipality of Quebec, on the Lower North Shore, one of the lesser known regions of Quebec. This is confirmed by the results of a study carried out by a researcher from the University of New Brunswick. A good lobster comes from a rocky bottom and a good area. It is caught, early in the season, in cold water. This crustacean is fished in particular in Gaspésie and the Magdalen Islands. But, ultimately, the lobsters caught in these two places are the typical seafood of Canada. They are very popular in many countries.

In Quebec, the lobster season is at its peak, each year between the end of April and the end of June. But, like the snow crab, usually, the melting of the ice is the harbinger of the arrival of the decapod (lobster, etc.) fishing season. During this period, the abundance of lobsters is surprising and their prices are competitive in the neighborhood fish shops. But, the great period long awaited by Canadians generally begins around mid-May and ends around mid-June.