Claws for thought

For a quarter of a century, the National Lobster Hatchery in Padstow has been leading the way in crustacean conservation. Oliver Berry heads west to observe its mission in close-up

- Oliver Berry

I WOULDN'T call it glamorous work, but it is strangely satisfying,' confesses zoologist Chris Weston, as he picks up a giant pipette—adapted from a modified turkey baster—and leans over a bubbling glass tank. Inside, hundreds of tiny, translucent specks are drifting around in the water. At first glance, they look like plankton, roughly the size of fennel seeds; but, on closer inspection, I realise each one is actually a tiny lobster, complete with claws, legs and miniature twitching tail.

'These are our Stage Fours,' Mr Weston points out, before sucking one up into his oversized pipette and decanting it from the tank into a celled release tray. 'They're about three to four weeks old by now, which is when they start to look like lobsters. Unfortunately, this is also when they tend to eat each other, so we have to stay on top of things. Otherwise, we'd have an empty tank by the end of the day.'

Founded in 2000 in the north Cornish port of Padstow, surrounded by foodie boutiques, bike-hire businesses and a working boatyard, the National Lobster Hatchery has become a world leader in crustacean conservation over the past 25 years. Since then, it has pioneered scientific research, hosted numerous PhD students, led education programmes and, most importantly, released about 500,000 juvenile lobsters back into the ocean—ultimately helping to ensure the long-term survival of Cornwall's population. 'The UK is the Goldilocks zone for lobsters,' explains Mr Weston, who joined the Hatchery in 2017 and is now its senior technician and education officer. 'We're between the cold waters of Scandinavia and the warmer waters of southern Europe and our coastline is ideal lobster habitat, with lots of rocks and reefs for them to hide in.'