# How Badly Could a Lobster Hurt Me? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 29, 2011, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489 "2011-08-29T13:43:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/1 "2011-08-29T13:43:23Z")
I notice that their pincers are always rubber-banded, obviously for their handlers’ safety. But what’s the worst they could do? Amputate a finger? Affect bruising and possible broken skin? Aggravate me ever so slightly? ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/2 "2011-08-29T13:50:45Z")
Their pincers are banded to keep them from fighting with each other. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/3 "2011-08-29T13:56:33Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > Their pincers are banded to keep them from fighting with each other. :smack: Hadn’t even thought of that. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/4 "2011-08-29T13:57:30Z")
This is a WAG but I would think they could break your finger. And by “break” I mean a full-on snap clean through. Those claws are all muscle. Far stronger than a human hand (consider the width of your finger to a lobster claw). I have gotten pincered by crayfish before and it hurts. In that case no worse than a serious pinch but they are tiny compared to an adult lobster. ---
**Author:** ![Enilno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58f4c7/32.png) [@Enilno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enilno)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/5 "2011-08-29T14:35:25Z")
I don’t think it’s quite that strong, but a big lobster can probably do a decent amount of damage if it wanted to. According to [this abstract](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1981.tb03444.x/abstract), the maximum force they recorded for a crusher claw from a lobster with a 172 mm carapace was 256 Newtons, or 57.6 pounds. By comparison, here’s a list for human bite force, from [this article (PDF)](http://www.glapbta.com/BFBP.pdf): > [@](#): > > Range: 55-280 lbs > Average: 162 lbs. > Max: 975 lbs. > incisors 22.5-33.7 lbs > canines: 72.6-109 lbs > premolars: 95.3-131 lbs > 1st molars 67.4-89.9 lbs > 2nd molars: 107-168 lbs So a lobster pinch would be similar to a low end bite from a human. Probably enough to break the skin, but I doubt you’d get broken bones since it’s a crushing force instead of a shearing force. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/6 "2011-08-29T14:42:10Z")
All bets are off if you’re flying somewhere and one gets sucked into your jet engine. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/7 "2011-08-29T14:46:33Z")
I cooked seafood at one low part of my life. Lobsters came 25 to a case. There would usually be one claw that would become unbanded/unpinned out of each case. It hurt to be pinched, although burns hurt worse. They would break skin/bruise but no where near amputation. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/8 "2011-08-29T14:53:13Z")
A rock lobster could hurt if someone threw one at you. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/9 "2011-08-29T14:58:27Z")
You could be severely lacerated by the tail. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/10 "2011-08-29T14:59:24Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > A rock lobster could hurt if someone threw one at you. So would a stone crab. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/11 "2011-08-29T15:12:48Z")
The real danger is infection. Lobsters carry all sorts of bacteria. This is actually worse from tail lacerations than from a claw crush. Claw crushes IME hurt worse though. I got a good one from a five-pounder once. Although the big ones are stronger, they also have a broader duller claw surface, so it’s not as immediately painful as when the little ones get you. But the crush from the big one hurt for days and bruised up nasty. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/12 "2011-08-29T15:15:34Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > A rock lobster could hurt if someone threw one at you. Especially if you were at the Love Shack, the Love Shack, baby! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/13 "2011-08-29T15:27:54Z")
I think of that song every time I cross the Nooksack River – which is several times a week. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/14 "2011-08-29T18:12:53Z")
You don’t wanna piss them off, or they’ll encase your feet in concrete and toss you into the Hudson. ---
**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/15 "2011-08-29T18:15:38Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I cooked seafood at one low part of my life. Lobsters came 25 to a case. There would usually be one claw that would become unbanded/unpinned out of each case. It hurt to be pinched, although burns hurt worse. They would break skin/bruise but no where near amputation. Me too, and I agree. Could definitely break the skin but I’m dubious about whether it’s strong enough to break your finger. It’s a squeezing pressure, not a sudden slamming force, and when one clamps down on you, it’s not so strong that you can’t pull your finger out. The real problem is that the claws have these jagged little “teeth”, so it doesn’t take an incredible amount of pressure to break the skin. When you are handling one at a time, as most cooks do, the risk of getting pinched is pretty minimal. The claws can’t reach you if you grab it by the body. The risk comes when you’re handling them in bunches, as \*\*kayaker \*\*described. I worked in a seafood kitchen when I was in high school, and that cured me of any interest in eating seafood until I was in my 40s. ---
**Author:** ![EarlyMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@EarlyMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EarlyMan)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/16 "2011-08-29T21:01:10Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > Their pincers are banded to keep them from fighting with each other. There are a number of reasons for banding them (customer safety, inexperienced Walmart Associate handler safety, etc.), but the Maine (pun intended) reason for banding them is to keep them from EATING each other, which they will do the first time you turn your back on them. They typically aren’t fed anything while in their holding tanks. 😉 EarlyMan (from the great state of Maine) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/17 "2011-08-29T21:26:09Z")
A lobster can kill you if you don’t cook it right. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/18 "2011-08-29T21:26:26Z")
One thing nobody has mentioned is the fact that lobsters have two different types of claws. One is a crusher, the other is a seizer. One has slow twich muscle fiber, the other, fast-twitch. I’d imagine it would depend on which one got you. I’ve only been grabbed by a blue crab, but it took me a rather long time to get him to let go. I bled a fair amount. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/19 "2011-08-29T21:49:54Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Those claws are all muscle. Far stronger than a human hand (consider the width of your finger to a lobster claw). Not a good comparison, given that they use two fundamentally different designs; exoskeletal versus endoskeletal. Especially since one of the advantages of an endoskeleton like ours is that it scales up better; large exoskeletal creatures need to devote more volume to skeleton (as opposed to muscle) than an endoskeletal creature of the same size. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2011, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489/20 "2011-08-29T21:55:20Z")
> [@Enilno](#): > > I don’t think it’s quite that strong, but a big lobster can probably do a decent amount of damage if it wanted to. > > According to [this abstract](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1981.tb03444.x/abstract), the maximum force they recorded for a crusher claw from a lobster with a 172 mm carapace was 256 Newtons, or 57.6 pounds. > > By comparison, here’s a list for human bite force, from [this article (PDF)](http://www.glapbta.com/BFBP.pdf): > > So a lobster pinch would be similar to a low end bite from a human. Probably enough to break the skin, but I doubt you’d get broken bones since it’s a crushing force instead of a shearing force. Concentrated along the comparatively narrow edge of the lobster’s pincer, I’d say that’s enough force to sever a finger, if it catches you at a joint, rather than the middle of a bone. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-badly-could-a-lobster-hurt-me/594489.md?page=2)