The lobster fishery resources of India

The increasing demand for frozen lobster tails from world markets has brought the Indian spiny lobster to the lime light. An assessment of the total lobster resources of the country is made. Among half a dozen species of spiny lobsters reported from the different coastal areas and which are enumerated, Panulirus homarus is the most important from the commercial point of view. Details of the distribution of the different species along the coastline are given. Kanyakumari District on the south-west coast is the area with the maximum production. An estimate of the population of this and nearby areas is made both by the fishing success method as well as the Petersen method of tag recovery. The two population estimates are quite in agreement. Based on the population estimates the present rate of exploitation is also calculated. Species of potential commercial importance obtained in recent exploratory cruises in deeper waters off Kerala are mentioned