paua
Sign in to savethumb|Ventral view of the shell of Haliotis iris. Pāua is the Māori name given to four New Zealand species of large edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs which belong to the family Haliotidae (in which there is only one genus, Haliotis).
Article
13 sectionsContents
- Species
- Habitat
- Life
- Harvesting
- Human use
- Aquaculture
- Background
- Meat and shells
- Pearls
- Popular culture
- Notes
- References
- Further reading
thumb|Ventral view of the shell of Haliotis iris. Pāua is the Māori name given to four New Zealand species of large edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs which belong to the family Haliotidae (in which there is only one genus, Haliotis).
It is known in Australia and the United States as abalone, and in the United Kingdom as ormer shells. In New Zealand, these are known as , which (as is the case with nearly all Māori words) is both singular and plural. In New Zealand, the pāua's polished inner shell is widely utilised for jewellery and ornamentation.