A GIANT lobster that could be 100 years old has been caught

by Plymouth fishermen.

Last week, The Herald reported that a 4.25kg (9.5lbs)

lobster had been caught by casual fisher Neil Ridley with his

fishing line off West Hoe.

But another of the creatures, caught offshore between

Bigbury and Hope Cove yesterday afternoon, has weighed in even

heavier.

The lobster, which has not yet been graced with a name,

weighs a whopping 5.88kg (12.9lbs) and is a hefty 32in (81cm)

long.

Fishermen Jack Baker and Mark Tennyson were out with a

friend on Jack's boat, Arandora Star, when they made the

catch.

Mark said: “He just came up in the net.

“The net was so heavy it actually fell out of the winch.

“I thought to myself, 'this is heavy' and there he was – he

just peeked his head out.

“He looked pretty angry when he came up in the net.”

Experienced fisherman Jack has been on the waters for over

35 years, but said he had never come across a lobster so

big.

The 41-year-old said: “I've been out with my father since I

was about two years old, but he's definitely the biggest I've

seen.

“He's been down there a lot longer than I've been around I

think.”

The lobster will be quarantined and taken for health checks

before settling into his new home at the National Marine

Aquarium.

He will take his place in a special 'tenth anniversary' tank

showing people what can be found in our own waters.

Douglas Herdson, information officer at the National Marine

Aquarium, said: “To get this big he's got to be a survivor.

“He's definitely over 20, probably over 30 and could be up

to 100 years old.

“It is very rare to catch a lobster of this size.”

Mr Herdson added, due to the size of lobster traps, once the

creature reaches a certain size, he will not fall foul of

fishermen's tactics.

It is notoriously difficult to pinpoint a lobster's age,

said Mr Herdson, as they grow at different rates and shed their

shells at varying frequencies.

But he said this particular male had not shed his shell for

at least two years, as he was littered with well-grown sea

worms.

Although he is the largest lobster known to have been caught

in the region in recent times, the record has not been

broken.

The current record-holder for a lobster of this species was

caught in Fowey, Cornwall in 1931.

It measured 1.26m (49.6in) and weighed 9.3kg (20lb 8oz).

The largest lobster ever to have been caught was 'Big

George' in 1974.

He weighed in at a staggering 16.78kg (37lbs) after being

caught off Cape Cod in the United States.