An Atlantic lobster, discovered inside a box at a car park in Canada, could soon be making his way back to the ocean.
"Mickey" was found on Wednesday, abandoned in the parking area of a fast food restaurant in St. Catherines, Ontario.
The one-pound crustacean had rubber-band marks around his claws, strongly suggesting that earlier in the week he had been sitting in the lobster tank of a nearby supermarket where he would have been destined for the pot.
The fact that the lobster was found the morning after April 1, together with the close proximity of a university to the car park, is leading to speculation that Mickey may have been bought as an April Fool's Day joke.
He is currently residing in an aquarium set up for him by The Lincoln Humane Society, based in St. Catherines, where Kevin Strooband, the society's executive director says he is "just chilling."
The Society's aim is to eventually help him make the 1000km journey back to the ocean and it hopes to find a donor to fly him to the East Coast.
Update: Unfortunately, since this article was written Mickey the lobster has sadly died. Kevin Strooband of The Lincoln Humane Society said the response to the lobster's plight had been very good and several offers to help him get back home to the ocean had been forthcoming. But unfortunately Mickey's ordeal all seemed to have been too much for him.
Why not take out a subscription to Practical Fishkeeping magazine? See our latest subscription offer.
Don't forget that PFK is now available to download on the iPad/iPhone.