Lobster is a favorite ingredient of diners all over the world, and it can be eaten in a simple way, whether chinese or Western.
In the lobster family, "Flower Dragon" is definitely a foodie healing system "warm man", living in warm water seas, the meat is tender and rich without losing its deliciousness, tasting a pint of flower dragon, absolutely can heal your heart in the face of many seafood delicacies.
From western-style rich shrimp tail meat to Chinese lobster full-body cuisine with full color, aroma and taste, "Hualong" has gradually conquered the world's tables through its thick and delicious meat.
Flower dragon spiny lobster, commonly known as small bees, also known as thorn lobster, eye lobster, Caribbean thorn lobster, etc., in the eyes of the inhabitants of North and South America is a precious gift from nature.
They are found in warm waters near the sea, from Brazil to North Carolina at depths of up to 90 meters, including throughout the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, the Bahamas and eastern South America, and even in West Africa. Although they are distributed throughout the Gulf of Mexico, they generally only inhabit the water depth of 33 meters in the north, and because the warm water shrimp has strict water temperature requirements, it is affected by seasonal water temperature changes, and it is the main habitat of the flower dragon in the southern Florida peninsula and throughout the Bahamas and the Caribbean Sea.
The flower dragon is generally 20 cm long and up to 60 cm long, with a long cylindrical body, a colorful coat, and a surface covered with spines. There are two large spines on the stem of the eye, as if they were a pair of horns.
The cephalic nails and tentacles are covered with small, sharp spines
They are generally olive-green or brown, but also yellowish-brown to reddish-brown. The carapace is scattered with yellow to milky white spots, and the spots on the abdomen are larger. They don't have claws. The first pair of antennae is long, black or dark brown.
The second pair of antennae is longer than the body, covered with forward spines, with a thicker bottom and sometimes blue embellishments. The feet are marked with blue and yellow stripes , and the abdomen is smooth with shallow grooves in the middle. Each pair of swimming feet and tail lobes are yellow and black.
Giant "flower dragon" caught by a fishing company in Bermuda
The flower dragon has a cautious habit, lying out at night during the day, and during the day it will hide from predators in rock crevices and coral reefs. Their natural predators include octopus, reamer sharks, lepidaceae, tortoises, harbor seals, bottlenose dolphins, and the biggest predators are humans at the "top of the food chain." They generally prefer shelters such as coral reefs, artificial reefs, piers, wooden bridge bumpers, docks and roots of mangroves.
A flower dragon in a state of "defense" in the sea
The flower dragon is a migratory lobster that when there are hundreds or more of them, they will line up and parade on the seabed. Due to the strict requirements of the flower dragon on the water temperature, the water temperature is about 30 ° C, which is very suitable for the growth of lobsters.
However, every Mid-Autumn Festival in China, the weather near the Bahamas changes and the temperature plummets, which is not a good sign for the dragons - they can't tolerate water temperatures below 10 °C, and when the temperature drops to 7 °C, the spiny lobsters are soon in danger.
As the saying goes, the sea sails by the helmsman, and the flower dragon migrates by the "head dragon". The migration of the flower dragon is very interesting, which may be affected by temperature, because the migration of the flower dragon is generally carried out in the winter, during which they will eat detritus, plants, animals and fish carcasses, as well as conch, sea urchin, crab and so on.
This migratory posture – are you blind?
No, we are dragons! shrimp!
A lively lobster put its long tentacles on the back of a partner who likes to take the lead, and its front feet grabbed its body and set off. Then, the second, the third... They were all connected from behind, and in this way, everywhere they went, the lobsters in the hidden place joined in, forming a queue of about 60 in each team, and marched into the depths of the ocean.
Flower dragons lay a large amount of eggs, about 230,000-2.6 million eggs. When the orange-yellow eggs turn reddish brown, the female lobster begins its hatching journey. During this time, the female flower dragon will take the eggs outside the body and hatch them.
Juveniles are born in a very small size and can swim freely. After several dehullings, they walk to the seabed and between caves or crevices or mangrove roots that inhabit reef forts. They grow their bodies by shedding their shells, and the new exoskeletons are soft at first and harden later. But at this time, they are very susceptible to predation, so they will hide until the exoskeleton is completely hard.
Flower dragon in a molting shell
It is also home to the Cuban lobster produced in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
Hualong has a long history as an important catch and precious ingredient for coastal residents of the Americas, and its fishing activities have begun since the 1950s, and the United States, Cuba, the Bahamas, Brazil and other countries and regions are its main fishing countries. Cuba has always been one of the countries with the largest catch of flower dragons, but in recent years the catch has gradually declined. With the development of trade patterns in the global seafood industry, the United States, which has more advanced technologies and fishing mechanisms, has gradually become a major catcher.
Art photo of Hualong 90 years ago
Compared with the United States located in North America, Cuba, Brazil and other countries in South America are more traditional in their way of catching flowers and dragons, most of which are dependent on offshore fishing, while the United States has a large catch due to advanced fishing technology, regardless of the scope of fishing areas or catches.
In South America, fishing for the dragon is a life
In general, the flower dragon can grow to more than 1 kg, but most commercial catches are between 500 and 700 grams in size. Flower Dragon is the number one in florida lobster industry, and in the United States, all Dragon Fishing comes from the state, and 90% of this catch is concentrated in the Keys area.
In North America, fishing for the dragon is an industry (commercial fishing, recreational)
The entire industry is primarily managed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Florida spiny lobsters with tail lengths of less than 14 cm and no more than 3 inches in cephalothorax are prohibited by law, and pregnant female shrimp cannot be fished.
Cephalothoraxes less than 3 inches should not be fished
Florida Dragons are caught in traps, cared for daily, and transported fresh. Although the fishing season is from July to March, the main harvest period is between August and November. Lobster dealers are allowed by law to store live lobster caught during the fishing period until after the end of the fishing period.
Hualong's plump and delicious shrimp tail has brought the lobster delicacy to the extreme, but with the advancement of global trade in seafood, especially after entering Asia and China, Hualong's cuisine and delicious taste have been sublimated again.
Flower dragon tail meat
In recent years, more and more flower dragons have been sold to the Asian market, especially China, in the form of fresh or frozen whole cooked forms.
Baked is delicious
The sublimation of Chinese color, fragrance and taste
Delicious Hualongyi network fresh self-operated and settled stores are sold, suitable price delicious shrimp meat, when you face today's "materialistic flow" of various seafood difficult choices, to give you the warmest cure, welcome new and old customers to buy!