While we most commonly associate lobsters with gourmet cuisine, it turns out these ocean floor dwellers are actually really quite fascinating.
For example, did you know that they never stop growing?
They also will eat each other without hestiation. Speaking to Time magazine, Robert C. Bayer, executive director of The Lobster Institute at the University of Maine said: “They’re looking for fresh food and what’s around, and if that happens to be another lobster, then it’s dinner.”
No solidarity to be found between these crustaceans.
However, the most disturbing fact about them is actually how they mate.
The lobster mating ritual is a little... weird
According to the expert fact checkers at Snopes, lobsters pee right out of their mouths. Yup. Goes in one side, and, uh, comes out that very same side.
This is actually a form of communication for lobsters.
The marine experts at Oceana Canada explained: “In the lobster world, one large male typically dominates an area and the females line up to mate with him.
“To get him in the mood, the female waits outside of his den, peeing in his direction out of specialised nozzles on her face. Her urine contains pheromones that let the male know she is ready to reproduce. Once he lets her into his den, she removes her exoskeleton, effectively stripping naked in order to mate.”
The female lobster then stays in the male’s den for up to two weeks, peeing to put off other females from entering.
Well, until it’s their turn for the pee party, at least.
That’s right, this whole peeing-from-the-face thing is both a means of combat and courtship for the crustaceans.
Suddenly, swiping through dating apps doesn’t seem quite so laborious...