Growth and survival of early juvenile American lobsters, Homarus americanus , on a diet of plankton

Laboratory studies and field observations indicate that early juvenile (Homarus americanus ) are more (perhaps exclusively) shelter bound than older juveniles or adults. If the early juveniles do not forage for food outside of their burrows, they must feed in a different manner and on a different diet than that of older lobsters. During behavioral observations in naturalistic substrates, early juvenile lobsters were seen to generate a current through their U-shaped burrows by pleopod fanning (Barshaw and Bryant-Rich 1988). They appeared to catch and feed on the plankton that was carried in by this current. These observations form the basis for the hypothesis that early juvenile lobsters can feed upon plankton.