Just how rare is a rare-colored lobster? Scientists say answer could be under the shell

A wave of odd-colored lobsters has showed up in fishers’ traps, supermarket seafood tanks and scientists’ laboratories over the last year. The funky-colored crustaceans inspire headlines that trumpet their rarity, with the blue-hued cotton-candy colored critters described as 1 in 100 million. The recent appearances of these rare lobsters have scientists asking themselves just how rare the discolored arthropods really are. As is often the case in science, it’s complicated. One scientist at the University of New England in Maine is using DNA analysis to try to get a firmer grip on how often the mysterious lobsters occur. A wave of odd-colored lobsters has showed up in fishers’ traps, supermarket seafood tanks and scientists’ laboratories over the last year. The funky-colored crustaceans inspire headlines that trumpet their rarity, with the blue-hued cotton-candy colored critters described as 1 in 100 million. The recent appearances of these rare lobsters have scientists asking themselves just how rare the discolored arthropods really are. As is often the case in science, it’s complicated. One scientist at the University of New England in Maine is using DNA analysis to try to get a firmer grip on how often the mysterious lobsters occur.  AP Technology and Science