Known by various names such as tropical rock lobster, ornate rock lobster, ornate spiny lobster, or ornate tropical rock lobster, Panulirus ornatus is a large, edible spiny lobster that has successfully undergone 11 larval stages in captivity.
The Indo-Pacific region, from the Red Sea and KwaZulu-Natal in the west to Japan and Fiji in the east, is home to Panulirus ornatus. Most of the time, you may locate these lobsters are typically found deeper than 50 meters. Nets or spears capture most lobsters. However, since 1966, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has overseen a commercial fishery in northeast Australia for the harvest of this species. The species is currently widespread throughout the Mediterranean, having traveled from Lessepsia via the Suez Canal.
P. ornatus consumes a variety of invertebrates, including bivalves, gastropods, and even tiny crustaceans. These lobsters require carotenoids for energy as well as other functions, including reproduction, post-hatching development, antioxidants, and even stress defense. When cultivated in an aquaculture environment, several of these lobster species consume other crustaceans. Carotenoids, particularly astaxanthin, are a key component of these meals. Many feeds contain minerals derived from blue-lipped and green-lipped mussels; however, studies have shown that the level of carotenoids in these feeds is insufficient for lobster growth.
Panulirus ornatus migrates every year from the Torres Strait to Yule Island in the Gulf of Papua to breed. The ovary expands, the pair mates, and they deposit the first eggs when the migration begins in the middle to late of August. The larvae release occurs when the Panulirus ornatus population stops migrating and settles on the reefs along the east coast of the Gulf of Papua.
Panulirus ornatus’ breeding season is from November to March or April. After arriving in the Gulf of Papua, the men and females separate according to the depth of the water. Males swim in shallower water, females in deeper water, until the eggs hatch. Female Panulirus ornatus may produce up to three broods, each smaller than the last.
The majority of adults who can reproduce are three years old. Males that are mating are typically larger than females, with carapaces measuring 100-150 mm long against 90-120 mm for females. After breeding, breeding adults die at a significant rate.
Adults who have bred do not return to where they bred. There is reproductive migration over the Gulf of Papua, allowing larvae to spread by ocean currents near the Torres Strait. Panulirus ornatus larvae may be found all over Australia’s eastern coast, but when they are young, they must go to the northern Torres Strait to mature. They then stay in the same reef complex for 1-2 years until they are mature enough to reproduce and participate in the yearly mass migration.