Arthropoda · arthropods

American lobster

Homarus americanus

Nephropidae · clawed lobstersIUCN: Least Concern
American lobster
Photo: OAR/National Undersea Research Program (NURP). · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · resized

The heaviest crustacean in the world and one of the most valuable fisheries in the Northeast.

Fun factLobsters taste with their legs and smell with their antennules.

Waters
Northeast US, Northwest Atlantic
Depth zone
Coastal shallows & estuaries, Continental shelf
Diet
Crabs, clams, fish & urchins
Size
Up to 64 cm, 20 kg

Classification

Arthropoda › Malacostraca › Decapoda › Nephropidae

  1. Kingdom Animalia animals
    • Many-celled organisms that eat other living things for energy (heterotrophs)
    • Cells have no cell walls
    • Most can move at some stage of life
  2. Clade Bilateria bilateral animals
    • Body has a left and right side that mirror each other (bilateral symmetry)
    • Head end with concentrated nerves; three tissue layers
    • Includes about 99% of all living animal species
  3. Clade Protostomia protostomes
    • In the embryo, the first opening usually becomes the mouth
    • Main nerve cord runs along the belly (ventral)
    • Includes mollusks, worms, and arthropods
  4. Clade Ecdysozoa molting animals
    • Grow by shedding their outer layer (molting, ecdysis)
    • No cilia used for movement
    • Includes arthropods and nematode worms
  5. Phylum Arthropoda arthropods
    • Hard outer skeleton made of chitin (exoskeleton)
    • Jointed legs and a segmented body
    • The largest animal phylum by species count
  6. Subphylum Crustacea crustaceans
    • Two pairs of antennae
    • Branched (biramous) legs in many species
    • Most breathe with gills
  7. Class Malacostraca crabs, shrimp & kin
    • Body of a head, 8-segment thorax, and 6-segment abdomen
    • Includes crabs, shrimp, lobsters, krill, and isopods
  8. Order Decapoda ten-legged crustaceans
    • Ten walking legs, the first pair often with claws
    • Shell covers head and thorax together (carapace)
  9. Suborder Pleocyemata egg-brooding decapods
    • Females carry their eggs under the abdomen until they hatch
    • Includes true crabs, lobsters, and most shrimp
  10. Infraorder Astacidea clawed lobsters
    • Clawed lobsters and crayfish with large claws on the first legs
  11. Family Nephropidae clawed lobsters
    • Marine clawed lobsters: one crusher claw and one cutter claw
  12. Genus Homarus
    • Species in the same genus are very close relatives and often look alike.
  13. Species Homarus americanus American lobster

Closest relatives in the guide