WORKING WATERFRONT • October 26, 2026
A steep drop in baby lobsters provided an early warning of the sharp decline in adult lobsters along the Midcoast, a new University of Maine study shows. Researchers found that an 80% decline in baby lobster sampled from 2010 to 2022 was followed by a 70% decline in young lobsters since 2015 and a 50% decline in adults large enough for lobstermen to catch. The findings trace the losses through successive life stages, showing how fewer baby lobsters preceded fewer adults available to the fishery.