Noel Edmonds sparks warnings after releasing bought lobsters back into the sea

Noel Edmonds has sparked warnings from his followers after sharing a video of him and his wife releasing lobsters that they bought in a shop back into the sea.

It’s been claimed that doing so can increase the risk of ‘disease transfer’ in the ocean, and potentially put the formerly captured crustaceans at risk.

In a video posted on his Instagram, Noel – who currently divides his time between New Zealand and the Isle of Man – explained that he and his wife Liz Davies had embarked on what they believed was a lobster-saving mission.

Writing in his caption: ‘We love and respect all creatures great and small ❤️🦞🌊✨,’ he said in the clip: ‘Alright, this is one of those more bizarre things that happens with us. 

‘We were at a place where there were some lobsters in a tank, and we’re a little bit uncomfortable about lobsters in tanks. So we bought the lobsters, and now Liz is going to release them.’

He brought the camera up close to Liz, who could be seen holding the two lobsters that they’d bought from The Farm Shop in the Isle of Man, before dropping them both into the water.

‘There they go and we know this is nice fresh water because a moment ago a seal went past,’ Noel said.

‘What a wonderful place. Are you happy?’ the former Deal or No Deal host asked Liz, to which she replied: ‘Yeah I am.’

While Noel and Liz bought and released the lobsters with good intentions, some of his followers commented on the post explaining why it possibly wasn’t the best idea.

Before the comments were disabled on the video, one follower said: ‘Lovely sentiment, but from a marine biologist perspective it’s best not to release captive lobsters.

‘Disease transfer and genetic mixing are real concerns to native populations – also restaurants will order more lobsters and sell them knowing people will release them – you’re liable to big fines for doing this.’

Another wrote: ‘They didn’t have a chance the moment he removed them from tank,’ while someone else claimed: ‘They’ve basically killed them. Look it up. You can’t release tanked lobsters into the sea for various reasons.’

However, Matt Harrison from The Farm Shop in the Isle of Man, has released a video defending Noel and Liz’s actions.

Captioning his Instagram video ‘Lobstergate’, Matt explained that Noel and Liz decided to buy and release the two lobsters after spotting them live in a tank in his shop.

‘That’s absolutely fine. They’re not the first. They won’t be the last,’ he said.

Matt explained that the lobsters are caught just off Peel in the Isle of Man, adding: ‘This tank is charcoal filtered, it is maintained weekly with salinity levels that match exactly the sea salinity for this particular area.’

Outlining that the tank is maintained between 7.1 and 7.4 degrees, he continued: ‘There’s been a lot of comments about releasing lobsters and it’s going to immediately kill them and they’re not equipped because they’ve been captive bred and you know all this sort of stuff.

‘They’re never in the tank for more than about two weeks. The temperature in the tank is probably slightly less than it currently is in the sea but when our friends Noel and Liz released them they’d been in a careful box and they’d been protected for about an hour and their temperature would have risen.

‘So when they were released in the harbour, in deep water, I don’t know if a seal would have got them, I can’t possibly comment on that, but they stood the best possible chance, and it’s highly unlikely, that they would have been temperature shocked into instant death.

‘So they did the right thing, they did what they wanted to do and I don’t feel there should be any backlash to that.’

The University of Maine published a report on ‘Best Practices in Handling of the American Lobster’ by the Lobster Institute, which explains that ‘any time spent out of water can be stressful for lobsters’.

‘Lobsters may not exhibit clear signs of stress, but sustained periods out of water can still impact health,’ the report said.

It also outlined that ‘any amount of handling, even by experienced individuals, can result in stress for lobsters’, stating: ‘Limit handling time as much as possible. Treat each individual lobster like an egg. Cushion any surfaces lobsters may come in contact with to avoid shell damage. Damage to the shell could lead to greater risk of disease or death, and impacts the overall quality of the lobster.’

The authors went on: ‘Multiple stressors may occur simultaneously, and when combined, are often more severe than each stressor would be on its own. Swift resolution of each stressful condition is key to limiting the harm from interactive stressors on the lobsters.’

While Matt at The Farm Shop in The Isle of Man stressed that the lobsters that Noel and Liz released were caught locally, and therefore wouldn’t be the American species, the UK’s Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science warns about the threat that releasing American lobsters can pose in native waters.

‘American lobsters tend to grow to larger sizes than European lobster, have a larger dietary range, are more tolerant of different habitats, are more aggressive and produce more eggs than European lobster,’ the organisation states.

‘This means they are at a competitive advantage over the native species. American lobsters might also carry the bacterial disease, Gaffkaemia, or Epizootic Shell Disease.

‘Transferring these diseases to native stocks could result in major economic losses to fishers. There is also a risk of American lobsters bringing other non-native species to our waters, such as barnacles and other small invertebrates which have attached themselves to the lobster.

‘Knowingly releasing a non-native species to the wild is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, including returning one to the sea at point of capture.’

Metro has contacted Noel Edmonds’ representative for comment.