Larry the Hugger Lobster dies after activists ‘rescue’ it from Florida restaurant

A 15-pound lobster that activists “rescued” from a Florida restaurant last week died during its 1,600-mile journey to Maine State Aquarium.

iRescue, an animal activist group, and a team of local residents raised money to free Larry the Lobster after the owner of Tin Fish restaurant in Sunrise called a local news station to show off the lobster’s unusual size. The lobster was estimated to be between 60 and 110 years old, The Associated Press reported.

Larry’s FedEx trip to Maine was supposed to take only one day, but Jeff Nichols, an aquarium spokesman, said the lobster didn’t arrive until nearly a week later, ABC News reported.

Aquarium staff unpacked the lobster and found it dead on Wednesday. It had been packed in a Styrofoam clamshell with seaweed and frozen gel packs.

Amir Rossi, part of the group that rescued Larry, told the Miami Herald that the stress and the time out of water most likely contributed to his death.

“Listen, we’re all disappointed with the situation,” Mr. Rossi said. “We did everything in our control to make sure Larry got to where he needed to be.”