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Starch–Iodide Swab Technique for Detecting Bleach‐Dipped Female Lobsters
Author(s) -
Heckman Kacey W.,
Smith Stephen L.,
Bayer Robert C.,
Jahngen Edward G. E.,
Smith Francis X.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
north american journal of fisheries management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.587
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1548-8675
pISSN - 0275-5947
DOI - 10.1577/1548-8675(2000)020<0538:sistfd>2.3.co;2
Subject(s) - homarus , bleach , american lobster , fishery , starch , crustacean , decapoda , pulp and paper industry , biology , food science , chemistry , engineering , organic chemistry
The illegal removal of eggs from female American lobsters Homarus americanus is a major problem in the lobster industry. Dipping female egg‐bearing lobsters in a dilute bleach solution to remove the eggs has been used by some in the lobster industry to make these lobsters appear marketable. Because this dipping leaves only a trace amount of bleach, it has escaped detection by conventional methods. We developed a simple, noninvasive technique for detecting the presence of small amounts of bleach on lobsters. Cotton swabs dipped in a starch–iodide solution turned blue when rubbed on the tails of bleach‐dipped lobsters. Swabs rubbed on nonbleached control lobster tails did not change color. A validation study showed that this method took about 5–10 s for each lobster and consistently stained all the bleach‐dipped lobsters with no false positives. This technique is ready to be implemented by law enforcement officials to monitor and protect the American lobster population.