132-Year-Old Lobster Set Free by Long Island Clam Bar

Last week, 132-year-old lobster named “Louie” was released back into the ocean after spending two decades in captivity at Peter’s Clam Bar in Long Island, NY. Owner Butch Yamali inherited Louie when he bought the restaurant four years ago and said that he formed a bond with the animal. Despite an offer of $1,000 from a customer looking to make Louie his Father’s Day dinner, Yamali said he could not sell him as food. Instead, Yamali released Louie—who is missing a claw—into the Reynolds Channel, a strait that separates Long Beach Barrier Island and connects to the Atlantic Ocean. “He’ll be just fine. There aren’t many predators who want to eat a big old lobster like that,” said Bob Bayer, executive director of conservation organization, Lobster Institute at the University of Maine. “Hopefully, he finds a mate and lives happily ever after.” Last year, 100-year-old lobster named “King Louie” was rescued by vegan Nova Scotia resident Katie Conklin—who spent $300 to transport the lobster from a tank in Ontario back to the ocean in Halifax.