Paua

Taxobox
name = Paua

---

regnum = Animalia
phylum = Mollusca
classis = Gastropoda
subclassis = Orthogastropoda
superordo = Vetigastropoda
superfamilia = Haliotoidea
familia = Haliotidae
genus = "Haliotis"
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = See text.

Paua or pāua is the Māori name given to three species of large edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs which belong to the family Haliotidae (genus "Haliotis"), known in the USA as abalone, and in the UK as ormer shells.

There are three species of New Zealand paua: New Zealand's best known paua species is "Haliotis iris". It is also the most common species, growing up to 18 cm in length.

Distribution

These three species of haliot

Habitat

Paua are commonly found in shallow coastal waters along rocky shorelines in depths of 1 to 15 m.

Life habits

These large sea snails survive the strong tidal surges by clinging to rocks using their large muscular foot. They feed on seaweed.

hell description

The shell of the paua is oval, and the exterior is often covered with greyish incrustations. In contrast, the interior layer of shell (called the nacre) of a Paua is an iridescent swirl of intense green, blue, purple, and sometimes pink colours.

Harvesting

Paua are gathered recreationally and commercially but strict catch limits are set for both. For recreational fishers this is ten paua per person, per day. The minimum legal size for caught paua is 125 mm for "Haliotis iris" and 80 mm for "Haliotis australis". [ [http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Recreational/Most+Popular+Species/Paua/default.htm www.fish.govt.nz] Retrieved on June 3rd, 2008.] Paua can only be caught by free diving. It is illegal to dive for paua using scuba equipment.

There is an extensive global black market in the collection and export of abalone meat. Pāua poaching is a major industry in New Zealand with many thousands being taken illegally, often undersized. The right to harvest pāua can be granted legally under Māori customary rights, but when permits to harvest are abused, it is difficult to police. The limit is strictly enforced by roving Ministry of Fisheries officers with the backing of police. Convictions have resulted in seizure of diving gear, boats, and motor vehicles as well as fines and in rare cases, imprisonment. The Ministry of Fisheries expects in the year 2004/05, nearly 1,000 tons of pāua will be poached, with 75% of that beingundersized. [http://www.fish.govt.nz/information/corp-docs/soi-04-08/pau2-industry-association.pdf]

Human use

To Māori, paua are recognised taonga, or treasure, esteemed both as "kai moana" (seafood) and as a valued resource for traditional and contemporary arts and crafts. Paua are frequently used to represent the eyes in Māori carvings and traditionally are associated with the stars, or "whetu" the eyes of ancestors that gaze down from the night sky.

The paua is iconic in New Zealand: its black muscular foot is considered a delicacy, and the shell is frequently used in jewelry.

Highly polished New Zealand pāua shells are extremely popular as souvenirs with their striking blue, green, and purple iridescence. Transporting unprocessed abalone shells out of New Zealand is illegal. Quick fact about the Paua shell: The Paua shells make up the decoration on Xena's first chakram in the hit TV series . Although the show was set predominately in Ancient Greece, the shell is used because the Paua is native to New Zealand, the location of where the show was actually filmed.

Other names

Paua is also called "Sea Opal". [ [http://www.earthstreasure.com/Paua-SeaOpal-Jewelry.html www.earthstreasure.com] Retrieved on April 27th, 2008.]

Notes

References

* Powell A W B, "New Zealand Mollusca", William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979 ISBN 0-00-216906-1
* Citation
last = New Zealand Press Association
author-link = NZPA
title = Paua industry wants stiffer penalties for thieves
newspaper = The New Zealand Herald
date = 2006-05-30
year = 2006
url = http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?objectid=10384228
*Citation
author = Ministry of Fisheries
title = Species Focus - Paua (purple paua - Halitosis iris)
year = 2007
url = http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Publications/State+of+our+fisheries/Managing+Our+Catch/Paua.htm

Reading

* McCrea, Malcolm (2005) "Paua Craft: A Nga Paua.| url = http://www.pauamana.com" Raupo Publishing (NZ). ISBN 0790009951.