Rare 1-in-30-million lobster rescued from Long Island Stop & Shop

SOUTHAMPTON, Long Island (PIX11) — A rare 1-in-30 million lobster was rescued from a Stop & Shop in Southampton and released back into the wild.

The crustacean, nicknamed Clementine, is orange, which makes it even rarer than the 1-in-2 million blue lobster.

Clementine reportedly arrived at the Southampton grocery store in a shipment with traditional brown lobsters. Stop & Shop management sought to spare the lobster and agreed to donate it for rehabilitation and release to the wild.

Humane Long Island was able to rehabilitate Clementine with the help of a veterinarian. The crustacean was reacclimated to the sea and successfully released into the ocean.

“Lobsters are sensitive, intelligent animals who can travel as far as 100 miles or more each year. Like all aquatic animals, lobsters will pain and suffer when taken from their ocean homes to be eaten or confined to cramped aquariums,” says John Di Leonardo, anthrozoologist and executive director of Humane Long Island.

Humane Long Island sent Stop & Shop management a gift basket filled with lobster-shaped vegan chocolates, crabless vegan cakes, and PETA’s Vegan Starter Kit.

Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here .

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