Crustacean terminology relating to the lobster
Soft-shell lobsters, also called shedders or new shells, have shed their hard shells and regrown a shell (the new shell starts inside the old one). They hide in rocks or bury themselves in the mud until the new shell is hard enough to be protective. Soft-shells are in season now; they typically have less meat than hard-shells, but it is sweeter.
Hard-shell lobsters have been in the water for six months after they shed. These are typically fished from late fall through spring. Their price is usually $1 per pound higher than for soft-shells. Hard-shells, as the name implies, are hard to crack.
Select is a lobster in perfect condition, 2 pounds or more, typically a hard-shell. Lobstermen get a premium and consumers pay more.
Cull is a lobster missing one of its claws. (A pistol is missing both.) Most are processed for their meat, but you can buy them in lobster pounds, typically priced lower.
