The contemporary importance of the Blackfoot-Abalone

The Far-East Delicacy Beginning in the 1990’s, the importance of Paúa-farming increased, due to the far-east market’s demand for the tasty flesh of this highly prized delicacy.

The Mother-of-Pearl. The colourfully grained mother-of-pearl has become well known to our hemisphere. It is usually offered at souvenir shops in its natural state or used for inlay work in decorative ornaments. The undulating grain is the result of seasonal fluctuations in the Abalone’s diet. The dark organic material of the conchiolin  layers is laid down during the winter months and the nacre, made up of aragonite and calcite crystals, is laid down in the warmer summer months.

Picture 6: The exposed exterior displays the single layers of the nacre.

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Farming the Abalone in water tanks >>