The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) revealed that the fishermen at Selsey on the English south coast are having big problem with non-native American lobsters. MMO says the fishermen think that the larger and more agressive have been illegally released into the sea. According to MMO five of the bigger and more aggressive American species, Homarus americanus, which can carry a bacterial blood disease, gaffkaemia, have been caught in pots in recent weeks.
The main concern is that these bigger lobsters could threatened the valuable stocks of the high quality native European lobsters. MMO Chair, Chris Parry, discussed the issue with fishermen on a visit to Selsey on July 1. There is a maximum penalty of £5,000 and/or two years’ imprisonment for releasing non-native lobsters into the wild under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
District Marine Officer, Paul Johnson informed that the effect of the publicity is so intense that the people have already come forward with possible sources of the illegal release of these lobsters.
