Story: Coastal shoreline

Purple shore crab

Purple shore crab

Take care when poking around crevices of the rocky shore – an aggressive little crab may be sheltering within. Purple shore crabs can deliver a painful nip with their front claws. They roam the coast at night in search of live or dead animals to eat.

Using this item

Department of Conservation
Reference: 10049380
Photograph by Rod Morris

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How to cite this page:

Maggy Wassilieff, 'Coastal shoreline - Rock pools and boulder shores', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/4822/purple-shore-crab (accessed 20 April 2024)

Story by Maggy Wassilieff, published 12 Jun 2006