Lobster fisherman Murray Townsend was astonished when he discovered a lobster with two distinct colours in his trap. But his astonishment turned to amazement upon closer inspection. This crustacean was also two genders - a hermaphrodite.

The lobster was caught in December off the coast of Nova Scotia's Cape Sable Island. Its shell, usually a dark green hue is divided at the midline - one side is blue and the other is greenish-brown. The lobster is equipped with both male and female reproductive organs.

The ocean oddity is a first for Townsend and his crew. "I've seen lobsters of different colours, shades and with different markings, but nothing quite like this," he stated.

A technician for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans said the odds of coming across such a specimen are probably one in a few million.

The Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Halifax has taken possession of the lobster after it was donated by I. Deveau Fisheries. The institute will observe and study the creature which is languishing in a salt-water tank. It will eventually be placed in a live exhibit.