There are various kinds of beaches, and the way they look is constantly changing

The three main types of beach considered here are:

• rocky shores

• flat, sandy (and shingle) beaches

• mudflats in lagoons and estuaries.

Many of the beaches in Aotearoa New Zealand are made up of more than one of these types or variations of them.

Related articles

• Estuary formation

• Habitats in the Bay of Plenty

Related activities

• Changes on the beach

• Estuary metaphors

• Where do I live?

Related images

• Monitoring rocky shore communities

• Mt Maunganui surf beach

• Mangroves act as a buffer (mudflats)

• Classifying marine habitats

Image: Piha Beach, Aleksei Potov, 123RF Ltd.