# How quickly does a lobster die.... **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 30, 2004, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284 "2004-11-30T04:52:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/1 "2004-11-30T04:52:34Z")
…when thrust into the boiling water to be cooked? Does shock kill it immediately, or does it have time to feel the pain? I really don’t know the answer, but I had a kid ask me(nephew, age ten) and I couldn’t answer. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/2 "2004-11-30T05:07:48Z")
You don’t put the lobster in the water and then heat it? ---
**Author:** ![MaceMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@MaceMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaceMan)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/3 "2004-11-30T05:10:26Z")
In short, lobsters don’t really have the capacity to process the feeling of “pain.” They can respond to physical stimuli, but that’s about it. From this site: [http://www.chilipaper.com/FWharf/Lobster/Lobster\_FAQ/](http://www.chilipaper.com/FWharf/Lobster/Lobster_FAQ/) > [@](#): > > Q. Do lobsters feel pain when immersed in boiling water? > > A. Pain is a human concept. Human beings and other vertebrates possessing an advanced nervous system feel pain. Lobsters are invertebrates with a very primitive nervous system similar to that of a grasshopper. A lobster’s nervous system is lower on the evolutionary scale than that of fish, and is designed to respond to very basic stimuli contained within their habitat. Scientific research conducted at the Maine Department of Marine Resources in the United States shows that lobsters, like most other marine invertebrates, cannot survive heat exposure and can die at temperatures of 30 degrees Celsius, which feels lukewarm to human touch. > > Q. Why do lobsters twitch after being immersed in boiling water? > > A. Lobsters die almost immediately upon contact with boiling water. However, the tail may twitch for approximately one minute after being immersed. According to scientific research, this is caused by an involuntary muscle contraction. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/4 "2004-11-30T05:13:13Z")
Thank you **Maceman** , for that info. ---
**Author:** ![SavageNarce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@SavageNarce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SavageNarce)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/5 "2004-11-30T12:44:41Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > You don’t put the lobster in the water and then heat it? No, that would a) take too long b) risk overcooking the succulent beasties. \Mmmm, lobsters! 🙂 \ If we have squeamish witnesses to our lobster boil, I have “put the lobsters to sleep” before boiling them. If you stand a lobster on its head for a minute (or less), they appear to pass out and stop thrashing around. I say “appear to” because, as noted above, the lobster nervous system is considerably different from our own, and lack of motor activity may not necessarily indicate lack of nerve activity. ---
**Author:** ![av8rmike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@av8rmike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/av8rmike)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/6 "2004-11-30T14:36:59Z")
The Food Network show “Good Eats” is, as usual, the source for all things culinary. From [here](http://www.goodeatsfanpage.com/Season4/Lobster/LobsterTranscript.htm): > [@Alton Brown](#): > > Actually there are only two methods recognized by the Geneva Convention. The first one is instantaneous and if I were a lobster and somebody gave me a choice this is the method I would choose. Take a chef’s knife, a big heavy one, and place the point right in this crack down the head, right behind the eyes by about an inch. Hmm. Okay. Uh, if you think you’re up to it, put the knife right in that crack and then push straight down to the board and chop forward and thus bifurcating the head. The bug will be dead instantaneously. No fuss. > Now if you don’t feel you’re up to it, well, let’s chill. Fifteen to twenty minutes in here [freezer] and they won’t feel a thing when the time comes. That’s what the experts say. I’m not a lobster so I can’t say. But I do know that it will slow down their metabolisms significantly and numb them to the point that they won’t even move when you get them out. After removing them from the freezer, Alton puts them straight into the pot (steaming, not boiling) and says, “Count to 10. [waits for 10 count] Your bugs are already dead.” ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/7 "2004-11-30T16:30:38Z")
While I’m a huge “Good Eats” fan, I’ve never bought the “put them in the freezer to numb them” theory. Lobsters thrive in very cold water - I’ve pulled live thrashing lobsters out of 37 degree water in New England. I strongly doubt that 15 minutes in the 20 degree air of a freezer will get them any colder than what they’re used to anyway. I think it’s just a sop to the conscience of those who want to eat lobster, but feel a need to kill them “humanely”. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/8 "2004-11-30T17:21:57Z")
> [@SavageNarce](#): > > No, that would a) take too long b) risk overcooking the succulent beasties. Not to mention the horrible scrabbling sounds of a terrified lobster trying to escape as his metal cell grows hotter and hotter. With the amount of water you need to heat up to boil a live lobster, this could take a very long time. Nightmare fuel. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/9 "2004-11-30T17:32:40Z")
> [@](#): > > The bug will be dead instantaneously. That’s the part that stops me—have you ever _looked_ at the things? _They’re giant cockroaches!_ How can anyone _eat_ them? [_shudder_] ---
**Author:** ![Genghis\_Bob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/45deac/32.png) [@Genghis\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Genghis_Bob)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/10 "2004-11-30T17:40:56Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > That’s the part that stops me—have you ever _looked_ at the things? _They’re giant cockroaches!_ How can anyone _eat_ them? > > [_shudder_] Yes. . . but they’re giant, \*succulent \* cockroaches. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/11 "2004-11-30T17:44:48Z")
Re: putting them in cold water and heating it: I have also heard (no cite, but I’ll try to find one) that if a lobster “knows” it’s going to die, then certain chemicals will get released from organs into the meat, rendering it, at the very least, bad tasting, and at the worst, poisonous. Granted, this sounds a little iffy, so anyone with more knowledge of a lobster is welcome to tell me I’m an idiot. Alsom lobsters are disgusting, like all seafood. Eve is right…just a giant, underwate cockroach. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/12 "2004-11-30T17:50:02Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > That’s the part that stops me—have you ever _looked_ at the things? _They’re giant cockroaches!_ How can anyone _eat_ them? > > [_shudder_] What, you prefer to dine on the adorable and cuddly? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/13 "2004-11-30T17:52:22Z")
[this](http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/ops/fm/shellfish/Biotoxins/PSP_e.htm) was the bst I could find. It does mention a lobster has toxins in it’s tamale (liver) but nothing about them being released into the rest of the body if cooked slowly. Granted, since most people I know eat the tamale anyway, and the site suggests that up to two lobster tamales a day is still OK, it’s a non-issue, really. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/14 "2004-11-30T17:52:43Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > What, you prefer to dine on the adorable and cuddly? 😃 Of course—the cuter the animal, the better they taste! ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/15 "2004-11-30T17:53:33Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > What, you prefer to dine on the adorable and cuddly? 😃 I know I do! Have you ever seen a deer? Aww…so cute…BLAM! Venison stew tonight! ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/16 "2004-11-30T18:45:06Z")
> [@bouv](#): > > I know I do! Have you ever seen a deer? Aww…so cute…BLAM! Venison stew tonight! Ooh, Bambi…mmmmmm! A friend of mine swears that drunk lobster is the way to go. He says he learned this from a New England coast family. I don’t remember the exact proportions, but it involved several gallons of wine, plus ice and water in a bathtub. Let the nasty little bugs swim around in it for a while (a half-hour?) and then pop them into boiling water. He swears that it was the best lobster he’d ever had…they’re all happy and relaxed, then boom! They’re too toasted to get the anxiety toxins going before they croak. I wouldn’t know, I don’t eat 'em. ---
**Author:** ![SavageNarce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@SavageNarce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SavageNarce)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/17 "2004-11-30T19:04:43Z")
> [@redtail23](#): > > A friend of mine swears that drunk lobster is the way to go… it involved several gallons of wine, plus ice and water in a bathtub. Must have been one of the richer New England families, to have wasted several gallons of wine in such a way… Here in Nova Scotia, we prefer a bucket of sea water. Boil 'em up, crack the claws with a hammer, and serve with vast quantities of melted butter. Cholesterol be damned! BTW, today is the first day of the season in Districts 33 and 34 (southwest Nova Scotia). The season would normally have begun yesterday, but high winds forced a postponement. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/18 "2004-11-30T19:22:55Z")
> [@MaceMan](#): > > In short, lobsters don’t really have the capacity to process the feeling of “pain.” They can respond to physical stimuli, but that’s about it. > > From this site: [http://www.chilipaper.com/FWharf/Lobster/Lobster\_FAQ/](http://www.chilipaper.com/FWharf/Lobster/Lobster_FAQ/) Wish I’d known that years ago when I regularly ate crawdads (crayfish). A neighbor my age said I was cruel to animals because I was torturing them. (This from the same kid that would trap me in underground forts of his and then throw dirt clods at me. :rolleyes: ) ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/19 "2004-11-30T20:21:27Z")
**SavageNarce** : Not necessarily. If I was going to make drunk lobster, I’d use box wine. Probably a white of some kind. ---
**Author:** ![SavageNarce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@SavageNarce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SavageNarce)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2004, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284/20 "2004-11-30T20:37:00Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > If I was going to make drunk lobster, I’d use box wine. Probably a white of some kind. Idaho must still offer cheaper boxed plonk than we can get here. Since our wine sales are all made through government-controlled outlets (and since they “sin tax” the hell out of alcohol) it would still cost me considerably more for the wine to cook the lobsters than for the lobsters themselves. My preferred methodology would be to eat the lobster, drink the wine, and let them get together “after the fact”. 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-quickly-does-a-lobster-die/277284.md?page=2)