WALPOLE, Maine — Lobstermen plying the waters of the Gulf of Maine from the southern end of Maine’s coast to the Canadian border have seen historically high landings in recent years, offering a stark contrast to the lobster fishery in southern New England.
According to data from the Maine Department of Marine Resources, 2015 marked the fourth year in a row and the fourth year in the state’s history in which Maine lobster harvesters landed more than 120 million pounds of the crustaceans, with the 2015 figure totaling 121,083,418 pounds.
Alternatively, the crustacean fishery south of Cape Cod, a once lucrative industry, has been hit hard in recent years with steep declines in the region’s lobster population.
Though not believed to be the cause of the collapse in southern New England, epizootic shell disease has been seen in rising numbers in the warmer waters of these more southerly states and could pose a future threat to the currently booming population in the Gulf of Maine.
