Meet Crush: The rare orange lobster is now the star at the Downtown Denver Aquarium
Downtown Aquarium has a new, vibrant resident—a particularly rare orange lobster rescued from a shipment to the Shrimp restaurant Red Lobster in Pueblo, Colorado.
According to aquarium officials, last Friday, a longtime dishwasher and cookie maker at the restaurant discovered the bright orange lobster while unloading and alerted the restaurant manager. The lobster is named Crush, inspired by the legendary “Orange Crush” defense of the Denver Broncos from 1976 to 1986.
“I, along with many of the team members, have been lifelong Denver Broncos fans. As soon as we saw that bright orange color, we knew Crush would be a great representative,” said Kendra Kastendieck, the restaurant’s general manager. “We all hope our defense will be as strong as the Broncos!”
When the Pueblo Zoo was unable to accommodate Crush, Kastendieck reached out to the Downtown Aquarium and expressed immediate interest. Crush was carefully packed with ice inside a foam box and delivered to the aquarium on Wednesday.
“By Thursday, after getting acquainted with the quarantine tank at the Denver Aquarium, Crush was very active and exploring his new environment,” Kastendieck noted. Aquarium staff have set up a tank of Denver Broncos helmets and a tank of older generation helmets in the enclosure for Crush to play in.
Aquarium staff said Crush will undergo a veterinary examination and after a 30-day quarantine period, Crush will be placed in the “Lurks” exhibit, which showcases other cold-water species from the North Atlantic.
Ryan Herman, General Manager at the Downtown Denver Aquarium, expressed excitement about the new addition: “We are excited to share this incredibly rare and special creature with the community and visitors to Colorado .”
Crush was shipped from a supplier in Tennessee and is believed to have been caught off the Canadian coast, although the exact location is unknown. Genetic mutations can cause lobsters to take on colors like orange, blue, and yellow. The Downtown Aquarium previously had orange lobsters.
The Downtown Aquarium has more than 700 species of fish, along with a coral reef of stingrays and three Sumatran tigers.
