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Story: Shellfish

Shellfish traditionally eaten by Māori

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Shellfish traditionally eaten by Māori

This table lists the wide variety of shellfish whose shells archaeologists have found discarded in middens (ancient rubbish sites). Today, Māori still gather shellfish but from a much more limited range.

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Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Source: Margaret S. Morley, Seashells of New Zealand. Auckland: New Holland, 2004, and Andrew Crowe, Which seashell? Auckland: Penguin, 1999

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How to cite this page

Maggy Wassilieff, Shellfish – Food and other uses, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/diagram/9360/shellfish-traditionally-eaten-by-maori (accessed 24 June 2026).

Story by Maggy Wassilieff, published 2 March 2009.