Red reef lobster
Enoplometopus occidentalis
- Usual depth10–1,180 m
- Water temperature18–29 °C
- Best monthsMarch, April, and September
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) Robin White, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Enoplometopus occidentalis, the red reef lobster, Hawaiian reef lobster, or hairy reef lobster, is a reef lobster, native to the Indo-Pacific Ocean. It is in the family Enoplometopidae. The species was first discovered by zoologist John Witt Randall, who originally classified it as Nephrops occidentalis.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Enoplometopus occidentalis”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 4 records
- February: 3 records
- March: 10 records
- April: 7 records
- May: 7 records
- June: 6 records
- July: 6 records
- August: 6 records
- September: 9 records
- October: 7 records
- November: 3 records
- December: 6 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 10–1,180 m · Deepest record: 1,180 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 18–29 °C
Photos
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Red reef lobster, Hawaiian Red Lobster, Red Dwarf Reef Lobster, red reef lobster
Names in 3 more languages
- French
- Homard Occidental, Langoustine rouge
- Japanese
- ショウグンエビ
- Simplified Chinese
- 西方礁螯蝦
Other scientific names: Enoplometopus (Enoplometopus) occidentalis, Nephrops occidentalis
Similar species
Crosnier's Reef LobsterEnoplometopus crosnieri
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 33 open-data records from 1911 to 2012.
- Species data updated November 2, 2026.
Log what you see on your next dive
The free DiveHive diver app keeps your logbook with every sighting and shows what lives at the site you dive next.