BALTIMORE — The National Aquarium celebrated the homecoming of Toby, the rare blue lobster found off the coast of Maryland on Tuesday, January 12, 2013.
Toby, who was previously on exhibit at the now closed Washington, D.C. venue, will immediately go on exhibit when he moves into his new home in the Atlantic Shelf gallery in the Maryland: Mountains to the Sea exhibit.
Toby’s particular blue hue is said to be a one-in-two-million exception to the reddish-brown shade of most lobsters. This unique color is a genetic variation that is caused by the lobster producing an excessive amount of a particular protein.
John Gourley and his team aboard the fishing boat, the Pot Luck, caught Toby off the coast of Maryland near Ocean City in June 2012 and donated him to National Aquarium.
Toby is one of 1,700 of the Washington venue’s 2,500 animals that were moved to Baltimore beginning in October 2013 following the announcement of the venue’s closure. The National Aquarium is located at 501 E. Pratt Street in Baltimore City.
For more information about Toby, visit http://www.aqua.org/press/news/2012/12-7-3-blue-lobster-on-exhibit-nadc.