Pāua

Pāua is the Māori name given to three species of large edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs which belong to the family Haliotidae (in which there is only one genus, Haliotis), known in the United States and Australia as abalone, and in the United Kingdom as ormer shells.

Species

There are three species of New Zealand pāua:

New Zealand's best known pāua species is Haliotis iris. It is also the most common species, growing up to 18 cm in width

Habitat

Pāua are commonly found in shallow coastal waters along rocky shorelines in depths of 1 to 10 m. There is clear distinction between juvenile and adult habitats for Haliotis iris, pāua less than 7 cm occur in crevices and under stones in the shallow intertidal zone while adults are found in subtidal zone

Life habits

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

Harvesting

Pāua are gathered recreationally and commercially but strict catch limits are set for both. For recreational fishers this is ten pāua per person per day. The minimum legal size for caught pāua is 125 mm for Haliotis iris and 80 mm for Haliotis australis, measured in a straight line at the greatest length of the shell. The exception is Haliotis iris taken from the Amateur Taranaki Paua Fishery Area, which is the area of Taranaki coast bounded by the Awakino River in the north and the Whanganui River in the south, in which the minimum legal size is 85 mm. However, pāua caught in this area cannot be taken east of State Highway 4 unless they meet the 125 mm limit.