Pair of rare, multicoloured lobsters new summer stars of Dartmouth ocean centre

CBC

13 hours ago

Burrowing under seaweed and crawling around a large open-top tank at an ocean centre in Dartmouth, N.S., are two beady-eyed alien-like creatures named Moonmist and Bingo.
One of them is half bright red and half black while the other has baby-blue and white "cotton candy" colours.
Moonmist and Bingo are lobsters.
The extremely rare duo, with colour combinations that are estimated to occur only in one in 50 million and one in 100 million, respectively, were likely headed toward someone's supper plate or lobster roll, until staff at a large Bedford, N.S., fish market identified the unique crustaceans and donated them to the Back to the Sea Centre in Dartmouth, N.S.
Magali Gregoire, head of the non-profit centre that offers sea-life education, said the pair have quickly captivated the centre's visitors, who may be used to seeing dull brown-coloured lobsters in grocery stores or fish markets.
"It's been really exciting for both us and our visitors. A lot of people have never seen lobsters like this," Gregoire said in an interview Thursday.
Visitors have been flocking to see the half-red and half-black lobster, named Bingo, who likes to sit under seaweed on the opposite side of the tank from bright, pale-blue Moonmist — named after the beloved Maritime ice cream flavour.
The centre ran a naming contest that generated a few hundred votes and suggestions before Moonmist and Bingo came out on top.
"The split coloured-one, that is Bingo. People did try to name the pair after the famous kids TV show `Bingo and Bluey,"' which is a cartoon about a blue and red dog duo. While the name Bingo earned top votes, Moonmist beat out Bluey, Gregoire said.
Gregoire was first alerted to the baby blue and white lobster by staff at Fisherman's Market in Bedford, N.S., where the lobster was set to be sold. The fish retailer offered to donate the unique creature that was caught off the coast of Canso, near Cape Breton, to the centre.
When Gregoire arrived at the market to pick up the blue lobster, she was offered the second rare lobster as a donation as well.
"We don't actually know where the second one comes from, so that one's a little mystery," Gregoire said.
Ian MacSween, director of retail operations with Fisherman's Market, said in a statement it was a "pleasure" to donate the two unique lobsters to the Back to the Sea Centre.
"We knew they would be kept in good hands and given an opportunity to showcase and educate all of their visitors this summer," MacSween said.
Although Bingo is not as rare a specimen as Moonmist, Gregoire says the former seems to be getting more attention from visitors due to a clear straight line that appears to go almost all the way down the lobster's body.
It makes it look like Bingo was perfectly half-cooked, with one side of its tail completely red, while the other half is black.
Gregoire estimates Bingo is between eight and 10 years-old, and Moonmist, who is slightly larger, is likely between 10 and 13 years-old. She said staff have had some difficulty identifying the lobsters' sexes, but they think Bingo is a male and Moonmist is a female.
When the two were first united, Gregoire said it looked like they would be fast friends, but this didn't last.
"The first day we brought them in, they were being very nice to each other. But we know lobsters can be territorial. So we have built a little rock wall that separates them," she said.
In the mornings when staff return to the centre, Gregoire said they often find the lobsters have rearranged the seaweed and rocks in their tank.
"We are finding they're crawling over the wall. But when one crawls over, the other moves away to the other side. Giving space," she said.
The pair will spend much of the summer in the centre, giving visitors as much time as possible to see Bingo and Moonmist before they are returned to the ocean.
"Just as the name of our centre says, Back to the Sea, all our creatures do get to go back to the sea," she said.