Shell recognition could help trace lobsters from catch to dinner

Scientists at the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies have developed AI that recognises individual lobsters by their unique shell features. Built in partnership with Fiordland Lobster Company and the South Australian Lobster Company, the technology matches smartphone photographs against a database containing thousands of lobsters from Australia and New Zealand.

Tests found the system could recognise a lobster three years later, including with barnacles and algae, a fresh exoskeleton or even after cooking. Researchers hope consumers will eventually be able to photograph their meal and verify its origin. That could help address mislabelling when exported lobsters are mixed in tanks with seafood from other countries, potentially strengthening buyer confidence and opening markets such as the European Union.

Tasmania’s commercial fishers catch just over 1,000 tonnes of southern rock lobster annually, valued at about $90 million. Researchers are now training the technology to record sex, size, colour and defects, with vitality assessment a longer-term goal to support live exports.

The team also wants commercial and recreational fishers, alongside citizen scientists, to contribute photographs for fisheries monitoring. Digital identification could replace physical tagging and provide more extensive, near-real-time data, helping researchers assess sustainability and respond faster to pressures including climate change and habitat loss.