Do Lobsters Have Blood?


Many questions have arisen since the past decades about lobster. One frequently asked question is, do lobsters have blood? Are you looking for answers to some of these questions? If so, then you are in the right place.

Lobsters have blood. Lobster blood is blue when exposed to air because of its hemocyanin. Lobster blood within the animal is colorless and moves within an open circulatory system. Lobster blood has been found to possess antiviral properties that make it interesting to medical researchers.

Lobster is a sea animal with unique features and is even unique in its internal body system. By now, scientists and other researchers have done a lot of research to prove many points about this animal. Most of the research based on the lobster body structure and how it adapts to the environment like other animals.

Lobsters are animals primarily found in muddy areas, especially in the muddy bottom part of the ocean. They are invertebrates, and their body is covered with a hard shell. The lobster is an animal that falls under the class of crustacean. Lobsters are docile animals, and how they respond to the environment has led to the rise of many debates. And there are many unanswered questions about this crustacean.

The biological makeup of the lobster is very different, and to clear all the doubt you have about lobster, you need to understand its biological makeup. It is different from many other animal body systems. Also, how it can respond to nature is different. Therefore, to understand or answer your questions, some things have to be explained from a scientific point of view. Now let’s dive into answering some of these questions about lobster.

Do lobsters have blue blood?

Lobsters have blood just like other animals do. However, the color of their blood is very different from other animals. Research has also been done, and some claim that even the lobster’s blood has medicinal value. Now, if lobster has blood, then the question to answer now is the color of the blood. The answer is the color of the blood of lobster is bluish.

Like other animals such as insects, snails, and many others, lobsters have a body divided into two major parts: the abdomen and cephalothorax. The original color of the blood or body fluid is colorless, but it is very rare to find it colorless. The blood is always blue due to reasons such as; exposure to oxygen and the presence of Hymocyanins.

Hymocyanins are proteins found in the body of the lobster. They are primarily suspended in their hemolymph. The Hymocyanins are used to transport oxygen in the body cells of the lobster. Also, due to the presence of copper in the Hymocyanins, they give the color of the lobster blood bluish color. It is like the red pigment we find in human blood. The exact process involves forming red pigments in the lobster to give the blood color blue.

The difference between human beings is that their blood is red due to iron in their hemoglobin. Therefore this is the reason why the lobster has blue blood. You know that lobster has a blue color and the reason behind it. Now let dive in further to know if the lobster has brains?

Do lobsters have brains?

Most people are familiar with this creature, but they have a different view of it. Others refer to it as just luxury food but not living creatures like other animals. It is why even you have any questions about lobster. Now let provide the answer to this burning question to know if lobster has brains or not.

The truth is that lobsters have brains, but it is not a brain like a human-like brain. Lobsters have ganglia that act as their brain. The ganglia consist of many neuron cells in their body. These cells can be as many as hundreds of thousands.
Though this kind of brain lacks a neocortex, it can still have consciousness. This animal uses a different brain system or nervous system, but it is meant to work as a brain should work.

There are even some experiments that have been done to determine the level of intelligence of this animal. According to most research, a lobster can even live for more than 100 years if left alone. They have the capability of remembering other lobsters, past acquaintances, and more others, according to some scientists who went ahead and compared the intelligence of this animal and found that lobster has the same intellectual level as octopuses.

Therefore the complicated nerve system of these animals in their brain makes them be intelligent animals. But due to how this animal is viewed as a docile animal towards humans begins. Many people have been mistreating and expose lobster to a lot of suffering and then conclude that they do not have a brain.

Hopefully, now, you have known the truth about this animal. You know that the lobster has a brain, but it is very different from many other living creatures.

Do lobsters feel pain?

It is another question that has raised a lot of debate among many people. Here, most people have believed that lobster is an animal with dead cells and cannot feel any pain; that is why you will find the primary method used when making a dish is to boil the lobster. Now let’s see if the lobster feels pain or not?

The truth is that lobsters can feel pain. Not only feeling the pain, but many scientific studies show that the lobster can learn and avoid the pain if the same thing happens again in the future. The lobster has a nervous system that is different from other living creatures. You will find that in other living creatures like a human, when exposed to the pain they can comprehend the pain and their nervous system has a mechanism to enable them to respond and cope from the pain. Unlike other living creatures, the lobster’s nervous system does not have the mechanism like going into shock to cope with the pain.

Therefore when you expose lobster to any harsh condition like torn off its claws or tail meat, it feels the pain, but its nervous system cannot have the shock mechanism that will make the lobster behave to see it is in deep pain.
However, what happens when the lobster is exposed to harsh conditions? It will end up experiencing prolonged pain or suffering. It is why many people can drop lobster into boiling water alive and conclude that they cannot feel any pain.

Remember that their nervous system cannot keep them in a shock if it is exposed to danger. It can feel the pain but lacks the mechanism to respond to the pain. It can feel the pain if you cut or boil it alive until you destroy its nervous system.

According to scientific research, it shows that a lobster can die within 35 to 45 seconds once it is put in boiling water. But after the lobster has died, its nervous system can still be up and function for up to one hour.

It is true because once you place the lobster in boiling water can twitch its tails. Their brain is not so complex as other animals to process pain. That is why they die silently, experiencing that extreme pain.

Due to this, you will even find that some government does not allow boiling the lobster alive. It has brought a serious debate, and many have concluded that they have a nervous system, but they lack a response mechanism. Therefore killing lobster using boiling water is one way of going against animal rights.

Therefore lobsters can feel pain and suffer for a very long period. Though they have all the brain parts meant for stimuli analysis, the issue is that it is very different from the way it is structured and how it works to handle pain.

Conclusion

This brings us to the end of this guide. At this point, we know that lobsters have blood which is color blue. Besides, they can feel pain when exposed to cruel conditions. The lobster is a docile animal that has brought a lot of confusion among many individuals. That is why many scientists had to go an extra mile in studying this animal, and from what has been found, it’s clear that lobster is a unique animal.

This animal can feel pain, have social bonds, anxiety, and experience like other living creatures. It is good to know how their body is structured, how they can survive and respond to a stimulus. Lobsters are the kind of sea animal that has been forgotten and silent victims of being seafood. Many people treat these animals cruel without knowing. Because of the way its internal system is not working as the same as the other animals.

Many questions are arising about this crustacean because many people do not know its makeup and how it responds to the environment for its survival. Wrapping up this article, it’s great now that you know if lobsters have blood, the color of their blood, if they have a brain, and most importantly, if they can feel pain. 

Nicholas Finn

I've been the captain of a fishing boat for over 20 years, and I created Pirateering to share my knowledge of and interest in seafaring.

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