Rare endangered lobster nicknamed Clementine is saved from becoming lunch

Animal advocates came to the rescue after an 'ultra-rare' lobster was spotted in a supermarket.

Employees at a Long Island Stop & Shop spotted the rare lobster, named Clementime, in a store shipment and began caring for the crustacean.

Aiming to 'spare her from the pot,' the store attempted to donate Clementine to the Long Island Aquarium, according to a Facebook post from the Humane Long Island (HLI).

The aquarium declined, and that's when members of HLI stepped in, releasing Clementine into the ocean earlier this week.

Employees spotted an orange lobster in a Stop & Shop, and contacted Humane Long Island (HLI) 

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In an Instagram video,HLI Executive Director John Di Leonardo confirmed that Clementine was 'one in 30 million lobsters who were born orange.'

Di Leonardo and other members of HIL secured Clementine and worked on getting her healthy enough to go back to sea.

'We got ourselves a big saltwater tank to rehab her in, we brought her down to the ocean, and she immediately began foraging,' Di Leonardo told NBC News. 

Upon her release, Clementine set about exploring the Long Island Sound.

'They all want to live natural lives in the wild. They don't want to boil in someone's pot or stay in a cramped aquarium,' Di Leonardo said.

Once HIL stepped in, John Di Leonardo and his team of experts cared for the crustacean, and released it into the wild earlier this week

Orange lobsters get their color from a genetic mutation that 'affects and prevents encoded proteins,' according to Ryan Herman from Denver's Downtown Aquarium.

They can be found in a variety of marine environments, including aquariums.

They can also weigh more than 40 pounds, grow over three feet long, and live up to 100 years old. 

'Lobsters are sensitive, intelligent animals who can travel as far as 100 miles or more each year,' Di Leonardo said in his Facebook post. 

'Like all aquatic animals, lobsters will pain and suffer when taken from their ocean homes to be eaten or confined to cramped aquariums.'

Orange lobsters can eat a variety of foods, including vegetables, worms, and shrimp.

Orange lobsters get their color from a genetic mutation

Di Leonardo believes boiling lobsters is unnecessary, and has advised animal lovers to go vegan.  

'We rescued over 200 animals this year, but saving 200 animals is just as easy as not eating them,' he told NBC News.

'It's never been easier to keep animals off your plate... You can get vegan lobster rolls. You can go to the store and get crabless patties that you can microwave.'