State warning on crabs, lobsters, snails

Escarg-NO!

Don't eat certain kinds of locally harvested carnivorous snails and the hepatopancreas of lobsters and blue-claw crabs, the state warned diners Friday.

That's because there's a marine biotoxin making the consumption of those foods dangerous, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said in a news release.

At issue is saxitoxin, nervous system poison, which at high levels can be dangerous to human beings -- and in rare cases, death.

Areas from which diners should avoid eating the affected foods include Western Shinnecock Bay, Huntington Bay, Huntington Harbor, Lloyd Harbor, Northport Bay, Northport Harbor, Centerport Harbor and Duck Island Harbor, the state said.