Nova Scotia lobster industry facing challenging season

Seafood buyers are reporting high lobster mortality and poorquality, which a federal scientist says may be because lobsters are extra fragile this year in Canada's largest lobster region off southwestern Nova Scotia.

Fishermen are catching lobsters, bigger than ever, in "crazy, crazy numbers,"saysJoel German, plant manager ofI.Deveau Fisheries in Barrington Passage,but this winter, more than the usual amounthavesoft shells.

"It's not the same lobster as it used to be, so we can't hold them as long," he said.

Lobsters generally grow out of and thenshed their shells once a year in a process calledmoulting.As theshells grow back, they're soft, making the lobstereasierto hurt and harderto store and ship.

A late moult meansthose shells had less time to harden before the province'ssouthwesternfishing season started in late November.

More lobster dying

In previous years, German said he'd store lobster bought in December until mid-March with a two per cent mortality rate.

This year, he said he's seeinga minimum of five to 10 per cent dying before shipping, with more neverhitting a dinner plate.

"It's to the point the dealers can't sustain the hits," German said.

"A lot of guys lost their shirts this year big time because of quality issues."

Stewart Lamont, managing directorof Tangier Lobster Company on the Eastern Shore, buys southwestern Nova Scotia lobster this time of year to ship live to more than 20 countries.

Up to half is too softto ship alive, he said.

"Generally speaking, we sell those lobsters at a loss ... That's been the industry challenge this winter," Lamont said.

"Our customers expect a premium, hard-shell lobster."

Previously, only 10 to 20 per cent would have to be sent for processing, he said.

Latemoultmakes lobster soft

A federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans marine biologist said he's not surprised the industry is seeing moreeasily damaged and low quality lobsters but that it may not be cause for panic.

"This was an unusual year, it was a latemoultand I don't have any reason to suspect it's going to be another latemoultthis year," saidBradHubley, lead scientiston Nova Scotia's lobster team.

• SouthwestNova Scotialobster fishery hauls big catches in good weather

So far, he said, it's looking like an environmental fluctuation instead of a long-term trend. In fact, this summerthe southwesteven could seean earlymoultingseason, if the warm winter on shoreis reflected on the ocean floor, he said.

Each June and and July,a team of scientistsstudy lobster catches and shell softness after the time lobster typicallymoultin that area.

Commercial lobster fishing off southwest Nova Scotia is pulling in record numbers and the highest in Canada, according to their mostrecent stock status update. But far fewer lobsters than usual showed signs of having lost their shells.

Few moulted on time last summer

Last year's study found only 1.23 per cent had soft shells around the normal moultingtime in southwestern waters. In 2012, at least 27 per cent had already moulted.

"When a lobster's freshlymoulted,it's like jelly,"Hubleysaid.

"Often times after they'vemoulted, they're very hungry, so when they're a little bit soft, they do tend to trap very well."

Lastyear, spring was unseasonably cold, and likelymixed with changing ocean currents, Hubley said.The colder the water on the ocean floor,the longer it takes the lobster to shed its shell.

• Read DFO's full 2015 southwest Nova Scotia stock status update

They haven't "connected all those dots together yet," he said, andDFO will be studying the shells again this summer.

"Will climate change affect lobsters in the long term? Probably," Hubley said.

"It'll affect everything, but is this a direct result of climate change? I'm a little bit skeptical of that."

Lobster 'running out of steam'

The lobster catches have proved challenging enough Nova Scotia's provincial government made mandatory a handling course to prevent lobster deaths. All buyers must take a course in order to be licensed in 2017.

German said the new rule misses why more lobster are dying this season.

• Proper handling of lobsters should mean fewer crustaceans lost, says N.S. fisheries minister

"It's not that it's mishandled. It's handled with care," German said.

"It's just that it's out of protein, it's running outof steam."

Lamontsaid he has writtento Nova Scotia Fisheries Minister Keith Colwell, saying the quality handling program is timely, but should be mandatory forfishers, processors and dealers, too.

"It's been a much more challenging business model this year than normal," Lamont said.

"There are all kinds of issues that are possible in a changing environment with climatechange...one that we need to applylots of lobster science."