An extremely rare orange lobster has been rescued and returned to the sea after it was discovered in the seafood section at a market in Southampton, New York.
The “1-in-30 million” lobster was first spotted at a Southampton Stop and Shop by a local animal shelter — which then reached out to Humane Long Island (HLI), an animal advocacy group.
“Arriving with a shipment of traditional brown lobsters before July 4th, the rare orange lobster, now affectionately named ‘Clementine,’ was immediately a celebrity at the Southampton grocery store — being fed shrimps by store management and being nicknamed ‘Pinky’ by the manager’s young daughter,” HLI shared in a recent press release.
The local supermarket was hoping to “spare her from the pot” by reportedly offering some sort of pardon through the Long Island aquarium.
But the pardon was not granted, the release continued.
Southampton Animal Shelter was the team that notified the animal advocacy team about the ultra-rare crustacean.
HLI’s executive director reached out to the local Stop and Shop, asking management to donate the lobster for both rehabilitation and an eventual release back into the wild, Humane Long Island stated.
The advocacy organization consulted a veterinarian and prepared a cold saltwater tank in an effort to re-acclimate the rare creature to the ocean.
In only a few short hours, Clementine the crustacean was swimming around and exploring Long Island Sound.
“Lobsters are sensitive, intelligent animals who can travel as far as 100 miles or more each year,” John Di Leonardo, anthrozoologist and executive director of Humane Long Island, stated in the press release.
“Like all aquatic animals, lobsters will [feel] pain and suffer when taken from their ocean homes to be eaten or confined to cramped aquariums.”
Humane Long Island reported that in Switzerland, Norway, New Zealand, and the Italian city of Reggio Emilia, it is actually illegal to boil lobsters alive when they are still conscious.
Fox News Digital Lifestyle reached out to Southampton Animal Shelter for further comment and information.
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