Homarus Gammarus - Distribution

Distribution

Homarus gammarus is found across the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean from northern Norway to the Azores and Morocco, not including the Baltic Sea. It is also present in most of the Mediterranean Sea, only missing from the section east of Crete, and along only the north-west coast of the Black Sea. The northernmost populations are found in the Norwegian fjords Tysfjorden and Nordfolda, inside the Arctic Circle.

The species can be divided into four genetically distinct populations, one widespread population, and three which have diverged due to small effective population sizes, possibly due to adaptation to the local environment. The first of these is the population of lobsters from northern Norway, which have been referred to as the "midnight-sun lobster". The populations in the Mediterranean Sea are distinct from those in the Atlantic Ocean. The last distinct population is found in the Netherlands: samples from the Oosterschelde were distinct from those collected in the North Sea or English Channel.

Attempts have been made to introduce H. gammarus to New Zealand, alongside other European species such as the edible crab, Cancer pagurus. Between 1904 and 1914, one million lobster larvae were released from hatcheries in Dunedin, but the species did not become established there.