Parts of a Lobster – Claws, Carapace, Tail and Swimmerets

All 13 parts on the diagram

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From above 10

Antennae The antennae are the large feelers. A lobster mostly uses them to sense what is around it.
Antennules The antennules are the small feelers. A lobster smells its food with them.
Eyes A lobster has two compound eyes, usually on stalks.
Rostrum Part of the carapace that sticks out in front of the eyes.
Carapace The shield that covers the cephalothorax. That is the head and thorax joined together.
Crusher claw Breaks open the shells of the animals a lobster eats.
Ripper claw The ripper claw tears soft food apart. It is also called the cutter, pincer or seizer claw.
Walking legs A lobster has eight walking legs. With the two claws that makes ten legs.
Tail (abdomen) The second of the two main sections of a lobster's body. It is the abdomen.
Tail fan The telson in the middle with a uropod on each side. Each uropod has two flat branches.

Under the tail 3

Swimmerets Swimmerets are also called pleopods. A female carries her eggs stuck to them.
Telson The last piece of the body. It is fixed to the end of the sixth tail segment.
Uropods The broad pair of limbs on the sixth tail segment. Each has two branches. With the telson they make the tail fan.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only where two of these use it: (1) NOAA Fisheries, American Lobster, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/american-lobster (crusher claw, ripper claw, swimmerets or pleopods on the underside of the tail, carapace, tail flipper); (2) NOAA Technical Report NMFS CIRC-389, Marine Flora and Fauna of the Northeastern United States, Crustacea: Decapoda, 1974, glossary, https://archive.org/details/fisherycircular389unit (antenna, the large feeler; antennule, the small feeler; carapace; rostrum; abdomen; pleopod, swimmeret; telson; uropods; tail fan); (3) University of Maine Lobster Institute, educational resources, https://umaine.edu/lobsterinstitute/educational-resources/ (antennules, antennae, crusher claw, ripper claw, walking legs, eyes, carapace, swimmerets under the tail); (4) Wikipedia, Lobster, American lobster and Decapod anatomy, text only, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobster (antennae, antennules, compound eyes on stalks, carapace, rostrum, crusher and cutter claws, walking legs, abdomen, pleopods or swimmerets, tail fan of uropods and telson); (5) OpenStax, Biology 2e, 28.6, https://openstax.org/books/biology-2e/pages/28-6-superphylum-ecdysozoa-arthropods (cephalothorax, carapace, abdomen, antennae, compound eyes). Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no photograph or plate followed. Licence: own work

How it works

A lobster has two body sections: the front, under one shell called the carapace, and the jointed tail. The first view shows the animal from above; the second shows under the tail.

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Head to tail, then underneath

Numbers 1 to 4 are at the front: the long antennae, the short antennules between them, the eyes and the rostrum, the spike between the eyes. Number 5 is the carapace. Numbers 6 and 7 are the two big claws, which are not alike: the crusher claw is heavier, the ripper claw slimmer. Number 8 is the walking legs, 9 the tail and 10 the tail fan. Numbers 11 to 13 are under the tail: the swimmerets in pairs, then the fan as its pieces, the telson in the middle and the uropods beside it.

Two claws, two jobs: the crusher breaks open shells, the ripper tears soft food apart.
Antennae are the long feelers. Antennules are the short forked ones between them.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a lobster?

A front section under one shell, the carapace, and a jointed tail, the abdomen. The front carries the antennae, antennules, eyes, two large claws and eight walking legs. The tail has swimmerets underneath and ends in a tail fan.

What are the two claws of a lobster called?

The crusher claw and the ripper claw. The crusher is the heavier one, with big rounded teeth for breaking shells. The ripper has a finer edge for tearing soft flesh. It is also called the cutter, pincer or seizer claw.

How many legs does a lobster have?

Ten. Two of them are the large claws and the other eight are walking legs. Lobsters belong to the decapods, a name that means ten-footed.

What are swimmerets on a lobster?

Small paired limbs on the underside of the tail, also called pleopods. A female carries her eggs attached to them, and the first pair differs between males and females.

What is the tail fan made of?

The telson in the middle and a pair of uropods, one on each side. Each uropod is a limb of the sixth tail segment and has two flat branches, so the fan looks like five blades.