The Washington Post reports that lobster lovers are used to adjusting to high prices, but this winter, they're shelling out even more for the cherished crustaceans because of a lack of catch off of New England and Canada and heavy exports to China. Winter is typically a slow season for U.S. lobster fishermen and an active one off Atlantic Canada. But catch is slow in both countries this year, in part because of bad weather, industry sources said. And the winter months are also an important time for exports to lobster-crazy China, which celebrates its New Year holiday Jan. 28. It's increasingly popular to celebrate the Chinese New Year with American lobster. That's causing demand at a time when supply is low. American consumers who were paying $9 to $11 per pound for a live lobster in September — already higher than the previous year — are now sometimes paying upward of $13 per pound. American lobster exports to China have topped 12 million pounds and $85 million in value for three years in a row. The country imported a fraction of that amount as recently as 2010, when it imported less than a million pounds of the crustaceans.