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Farming green-lipped mussels – introduction

Green-lipped mussels (kūtai, Perna canaliculus) are endemic to New Zealand. Discover how these mussels are farmed, and how a tiny parasitic crab affects the mussel industry. New Zealand’s unique ...

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ARTICLE

Testing how pea crabs affect mussel farming

New Zealand pea crabs are known to damage the green-lipped mussels they live in, but what impact do they have on mussel farming in New Zealand? Oliver Trottier (a PhD student at Leigh Marine ...

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ARTICLE

Mussels

Mussels are bivalve molluscs. New Zealand has 22 species of mussel including the blue mussel (kuku), little black mussel (hauea) and the ribbed mussel (pukanikani). Depending on the species ...

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ACTIVITY

Similarities and differences: wild and farmed ...

This activity explores the life cycle of green-lipped mussels and encourages students to research the methods by which they are farmed in New Zealand. It provides the opportunity to use a Venn ...

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ACTIVITY

Investigating how pea crabs affect supermarket mussels

In this activity, students observe green-lipped mussels to determine the impact of pea crab infestation on their size and weight. Purpose This activity will enable students to identify key ...

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ACTIVITY

Māori knowledge of animals – local contexts

Aotearoa New Zealand is rich in animal life – from tiny pepeketua and giant wētāpunga to ngā manu a Tānemahuta and ngā ika a Tangaroa. Some of these animals are unique to particular locations ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

eBird

This comprehensive worldwide online citizen science (OCS) project collates bird species, numbers, locations and times of sightings into a large database. You can create a class as a user and, by ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Spyfish Aotearoa

Come and visit Aotearoa New Zealand’s underwater world in this online citizen science project. Discover, count and identify unique fish species that live within our marine reserves ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Marine Metre Squared

Marine Metre Squared is a New Zealand citizen science project that supports communities to monitor their local seashore. The project has been designed to provide meaningful, valid environmental ...

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TEACHER PLD

Living World – The rocky shore

The rocky shore is a popular topic in primary school science. Below are some Science Learning Hub resources for primary teachers related to the rocky shore in the Living World strand of the New ...

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TEACHER PLD

Estuaries – a context for learning

With 75% of New Zealanders living within 10 km of the coast, many students will be familiar with estuaries. In scientific terms, estuaries are the interface between the land and the sea – the ...

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TEACHER PLD

Animals of Aotearoa

In this recorded professional learning session, Professor Georgina Tuari Stewart and Dr Sally Birdsall provide insights into the Māori knowledge of animals classroom resources. This suite of ...

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VIDEO

Testing the pheromone hypothesis

Oliver Trottier (Leigh Marine Laboratory) set out to test whether pea crabs use pheromones at mating time. In this video, Oliver talks us through his experimental set-up. He demonstrates how male ...

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VIDEO

A pheromone trap for pea crab biocontrol

Scientists at Leigh Marine Laboratory, including Oliver Trottier, are investigating biocontrol approaches that could limit pea crab infestation on green-lipped mussel farms. In this video, Oliver ...

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VIDEO

Running a pilot study

To work out how pea crabs affect mussel growth, Oliver Trottier (Leigh Marine Laboratory) collected thousands of green-lipped mussels from a single farm off Great Barrier Island, but first, he ...

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INTERACTIVE

Similarities and differences: wild and farmed ...

Use this interactive to illustrate the key similarities and differences between how wild and farmed green-lipped mussels live. Place each label where you think it belongs. This activity can be ...

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INTERACTIVE

Mussel reefs and biodiversity

Mussel reefs are biodiversity hotspots.

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INTERACTIVE

How mussels are farmed in New Zealand

Green-lipped mussels are New Zealand’s major aquaculture species. In this interactive, Professor Andrew Jeffs (Leigh Marine Laboratory) describes the key stages in farming green-lipped mussels ...

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