A new, shorter shrimp season aims to fix a common problem across Maine's fishing communities: catches are becoming lighter and full hauls are becoming much more rare.

But that trend doesn't extend to lobster, where the industry is headed in an opposite, but equally troubling direction.

Lobster populations have exploded in the Gulf of Maine which could have hugely negative effects on the local economy.

Although the catch totals from the Department of Marine Resources are not yet available, 2012 is expected to have among the highest catch totals with some of the lowest boat prices.

While more lobsters might seem like a good thing, it is having a negative effect on Maine lobstermen, Dr. Richard Wahle, University of Maine School of Marine Sciences research associate professor said.

“Maine's lobster population is at historic highs; that includes the Midcoast, but the most dramatic growth in the past decade has happened Downeast,” Wahle said. “The most dramatic recent changes have happened in eastern Maine, from PenBay (Penobscot Bay) to the east.

“There we see cobble nursery habitats that were nearly vacant 10-15 years ago are filling up with baby lobsters, so that they're now on a par with what we've always seen west of PenBay.”

There's an abundance of theories as to why there are so many lobsters, Wahle said.

“One theory is that nurseries in eastern Maine used to be too cold for larval lobsters to settle, but now they more hospitable,” he said. “A theory for the overall growth of the Gulf of Maine population is that the assemblage of key predators of juvenile lobsters (groundfish) have been severely depleted over the past three decades.”

The groundfish population, including Atlantic Cod, have seen populations crash to the point where the federal government had to step in and declare the Gulf of Maine to be in a state of disaster.

The influx of lobster to an already oversaturated market has had the effect of driving down prices.

Lobster hauls accounted for approximately 36 percent of Maine's 2011 total catch; of the 285,500,000 pounds landed in Maine, lobster accounted for 102,780,000 pounds. That haul netted $334,950,000, or 77 percent of the $435,000,000 total for Maine's 2011 total haul of all species.

For comparison, shrimp accounted for $8.7 million, or 2 percent of total hauls.

A larger lobster population has negative effects beyond just catch prices, Wahle said.

“There's some concern that lobsters are overcrowded and cannibalizing,” he said. “Fishermen know well that lobsters will tear each other apart in traps, but we've seen some evidence of big ones eating small ones in nature. The implications of that 'feedback' are not yet clear.”

There will be several meetings as the Maine Department of Marine Resources looks for reasons as to what can be done to protect lobster populations and a proposal for a limited entry system. The first meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m., January 2 at DMR's laboratory in Boothbay.

Ben Bulkeley can be reached at 207-633-4620 or bbulkeley@boothbayregister.com. Follow him on Twitter: @BBRegisterBen.