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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

Life of a green-lipped mussel

Green-lipped mussels are endemic to New Zealand. They make their home on rocks and solid surfaces around New Zealand’s coastline. Mussel life cycle During its life cycle, the green-lipped mussel ...

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ARTICLE

Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge

The sea is our taonga. Our connections to it are strong. More than 75% of New Zealanders live within 10 km of the coast, and the sea is an important part of our Kiwi lifestyle – whether we use it ...

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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

Finding a female

In this activity, students play a card game that models the journey of a male pea crab (a parasite of green-lipped mussels) from his mussel host and back again. Purpose This activity will help ...

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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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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Adrift

Although invisible to the naked eye, marine microbes drift continually in our ocean systems, quietly consuming up to 50% of the Earth’s CO₂ through photosynthesis and producing nearly as much ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

iNaturalist

iNaturalist logs hundreds of thousands of photos of flora, fauna and fungi. There are even sound recordings too. Each is described and geo located. iNaturalist is used by citizens and scientists ...

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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

Fighting infection, the immune system – unit plan

Our bodies have a defence system against pathogens that make us sick. This defence system is made up of cells, tissues and organs that work together to protect us. It is known as the immune ...

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TEACHER PLD

Design a label for a taewa product – unit plan

Students develop knowledge of prototype taewa products and design a label that reflects the cultural value and specified market for the product. Purpose Understand the attributes and benefits 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

How mussels spawn

Like many marine animals, green-lipped mussels mate by broadcast spawning – the simultaneous release of eggs (from female mussels) and sperm (from male mussels) into the water. In this video ...

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Explore related interactives

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

Marine stressors

Use this interactive to identify stressors in marine environments. Drag and drop the text labels onto the diagram.

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