Sea Urchins

Sea Urchins

Sea Urchins are prickly animals that live at the rocky shore. There are lots of different kinds of sea urchins. The Maori name for sea urchin is Kina.

How sea urchins move.

They move with hundreds of little tubed feet. They move very slowly. Sea Urchins cannot swim and can only move across solid surfaces.

Where do they live.

Sea Urchins live in rock pools and deep water and on the sea floor.

What do they eat.

Sea Urchins eat a lot of things like algae, seaweed and carcasses of fish.

What eats them.

Sea otters tend to catch sea urchins and break off their spines. Some people eat them too.

Which sea do they live in.

Sea Urchins live all around the world but they like warm water better.

Why do they live at the rocky shore.

Sea Urchins live at the rocky shore because there are fewer predators there and also there is seaweed and algae to eat.

Sea Urchins are interesting creatures with spines that live at the rocky shore.

Starfish

Starfish 

Starfish look like shining stars in the sky but they are animals live in the sea.

What do they look like.

They are bumpy and they are different colours and they have teeth. Starfish can have from 5 up to 12 arms.

How do starfish have babies

They lay eggs in the sand and then they leave to get food.

How does it move

It moves with its tube feet and if you turn a live starfish over you will see its tiny tube feet wiggling.

What does it eat.

Starfish eat clams, mussels and sometimes hermit crabs.

Why does it live at the rocky shore.

Starfish live at the rocky shore because the food it likes lives around the rocks too.

Starfish are clever because they stick onto rocks with their tubed feet.

Seagulls

Seagulls

Seagulls are a type of bird that live at the beach. They come in many different types of seagull.

What do they look like.

Seagulls have a beak that can be red or orange. They have feathers that can be black or grey and white.

How do they have babies

They lay eggs and they keep the eggs warm by sitting on them until they hatch.

How do they move

They move by using their wings. They flap them to fly and glide too.

What do they eat

They put their head under the water and find some bugs and eat them. People give them bread or hot chips. When Seagulls are in a group they stomp their feet to make the worms think its raining so they come up to the ground so they can eat then.

Why does it live at the rocky shore

Seagulls live at the rocky shore because it is a sea bird and there is lots of food there for them to eat.

What types of Seagulls are there

There can be a Black Backed Gull or a Red Billed Gull. Both can live for about 28 years. Red Billed Gulls have a yellow bill and like being by themselves. The Red Billed Gulls are about 37 centimetres and Black Backed are about 60 centimetres long.

Seagulls are very clever because they live at the rocky shore where there is lots of food to eat.

Starfish

Starfish

Starfish look like stars in the sky but they are under water animals. Some starfish are smooth and some starfish are bumpy.

What starfish eat.

They open a mussel a teeny tiny bit and they make their own body go into the mussel and they eat the things inside the mussel. Then they pull their stomach back into their own body.

How does it move

Starfish tumble around and around to move under water. Their tube feet help them to stick to rocks.

When are babies born

They lay eggs, then the baby eggs hatch and the baby starfish are littler than their mummy starfish. The baby starfish can’t go swimming until they are bigger.

What they look like

They can be smooth or bumpy. They can be any of those things. They might even be a little bit flat. 

Starfish can do a lot of things on their own. They are very clever the way they move with their tube feet helping them to stick to rocks.

Crabs

A crab is an animal that has nippers and a shell that lives at the rocky shore.

What do they look like.

They have nippers and a hard shell. They can be big as a plate or little as a bean. 

What does it eat

They eat pieces of dead fish and small fish that they grab with their nippers.

How does it eat

Crabs eat by using their claws to rip open their food and eat it.

How does it move 

They scuttle sideways and they hide between the rocks. 

Where does it live 

They live in the sea because they need water to live. 

Crabs are very clever because they can do lots of things. 

Crabs

Crabs 

Crabs live in the rocky shore and they have nippers to bite things. All Crabs have a hard shell.

What crabs look like

Crabs look like a hard cardboard box or a lunch box. They have ten legs and nippers claws. They come in different cali 

What crabs eat.

Crabs eat dead fish and algae other shell fish.

How long do crabs live for.

Crabs can live for three years.

Why do crabs have nippers 

Crabs use there nippers to catch food and keep them safe.

Where do crabs sleep and live.

Crabs sleep in cracks in rocks. Crabs live at the rocky shore. Crabs can go in the water or on land.

Crabs have two big nippers and a hard back and they live at the rocky shore.

Starfish

Starfish

Starfish look like stars in the sky but they are stars in the sea which are a animals.

What does it eat.

Starfish eat muscles and clams and squid and shelled animals.

Why does it live in the rocky shore.

To look after their food and because it’s safe for them. 

What does it look like.

Starfish look like stars in the sky. Starfish have four or five legs and they can change into different colours.

Starfish are beautiful creatures that look like stars.

Hermit Crabs

Hermit Crab

Hermit crabs carry shells on their backs. They live at the rocky shore. 

Where does it live

Hermit Crab live inside rocks and between rocks in rock pools.

What does it eat.

Hermit crabs are scavengers because they eat anything washed up on the shore.

Why does it have a shell

A hermit crab has a shell for protection. When hermit crabs grow they loose their shells and have to find another one.

What does it look like

A crab sees with eyes on stalks and has a hard shell. They have ten legs and nippers.

Hermit crabs are clever because they find a new shell when they grow bigger.

Starfish

Starfish

Starfish are animals that look like stars in the sky but they live in the sea.

Where Starfish live

They live in the sea in salt water because they don’t like fresh water.

How does it move

They have hundreds of tiny feet called tubes that suck and wriggle. They move slowly.

What Starfish eat

Starfish eat clams, oysters, sand dollars, mussels and snails. They also eat injured fish.

How do Starfish have babies

Starfish lay eggs in the sand.

Starfish live at the rocky shore because they need salt water and there is lots of food for them to eat.

Starfish

Starfish

Starfish look like stars in the sky but they are animals that live in the sea. 

What does it eat

They eat snails, oysters, plankton and other things.

How does it have babies

They lay eggs.

What does it look like 

They look like a star. They can be different colours and have different numbers of arms.

How does it move

They shimmy like a caterpillar. They have hundreds of legs under their arms.

Starfish live in the rocky shore and they stick onto the rocks.

Hermit Crabs

Hermit Crabs

Hermit Crabs live on land and rocky shores. They live in a shell and have nippers.

What do they look like. 

Crabs can be red and brown and orange. They are hidden in shells and they have ten legs with two claws in the front. Sometimes they have to move shells because they grow too big.  

What do they eat.

Hermit crabs eat fruit and poop and wood and leaf litter.

Why do Hermit crabs have shells      

Hermit crabs have shells to protect themselves. 

What do they do

They snip seagulls and fish with their nippers and hide in their shells.

Hermit Crabs are cool. They can do lots of things alone.