This large crab can be found in large numbers in sheltered parts of the Otago Harbour and local inlets. It can crush cockles and other shellfish easily using its strong pincers.
The Painted Prawn has a colour pattern of longitudinal bands of green and red. It hides by day in dark rocky crevices and can be found in tidal pools on rocky shores.
This large sea star can be lavender grey to orange in colour and has 11 arms. It is found from low tide to below the water and is common around mussel beds where it plays an important part to stop their expansion.
This nudibranch looks and feels rough like sandpaper. Its colour is variable and may be reddish brown to creamy pale and even have a spotted leopard appearance.
Many different species of Salp frequent our waters. A Salp is a barrel-shaped, Planktonic Tunicate. It moves by contracting and pumping water through its gelatinous body.
Sea hares come and invade our local dive site Wellers rock throughout the warmer months of the year and then disappear again after laying large egg Masses all over the place.
The tentacles of this worm resemble spaghetti and are usually the only part of the animal visible, the rest is permanently burrowed into some soft substartes.
Thick swarms of juvenile squat lobsters or whale krill as it is sometime known, come down our coast and into the harbour over a small period in the summer.
The three-and-three seastar is a small sea star its colour ranges with different shades of orange. It has six arms, three of which maybe smaller than the other three.
The variable nudibranch comes in many colour formations, most commonly locally they are a smooth pale white, and can be found with brown staining along its back.
It is found in relatively high water in the intertidal zone. It's commonly found completely out of the water with its tentacles retracted waiting for the return of the tide
The wellington nudibranch is the largest nudibranch found in New Zealand. It is covered in round pustules, and is stiff and slimy to touch. It ranges in colour from yellow green to pale purple.
The white-striped anemone is the most common anemone encountered in shallow water. It's column is orange to brown and striped with white, Its disc is flat, bright orange and surrounded by it's white tentacles.
This sponge is endemic to New Zealand, it forms thin encrusting mats on rocky surfaces. It is bright yellow, soft and compressible to touch. It's commonly seen encrusting the boulders and wrecks of the Aramoana.
The yellow-foot paua has a smaller and more elevated shell compared to the more common black-foot paua. It's shell is reddish to yellowish brown, the animal is black but it's tentacles and underside of the foot are yellow.
