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Food:
Abalone eat marine algae. The adults feed on loose pieces drifting with the surge or current. Large brown algae such as giant kelp, bull kelp, feather boa kelp and elk kelp are preferred, although most others may be eaten at various times. Abalone tend to stay in one location waiting for food to drift by. However, they will move daily, seasonally or when food becomes scarce for a long period. The color banding on many abalone shells is due to changes in the types of algae eaten. Juvenile abalone graze on rock encrusting coralline algae and on diatom and bacterial films. As they grow they increasingly rely on drift algae.
Age and Growth:
Determining the age of an individual abalone is difficult. Unlike the hard parts of some animals, abalone shells have no marks or bands suitable for assigning age. However, juvenile abalone in aquariums grow an inch or more per year for the first two years. Tagging studies have provided estimates of age for larger abalone in the wild. Red abalone are mature at 1.5 to 2 inches when growth begins to slow with age. For instance, a seven inch red abalone may be 7-10 years old, while one only 3/4 of an inch longer may be 15 years or older.