After planktonic larvae of palinurid lobsters metamorphose to the puerulus stage in offshore waters, they swim inshore and settle on the coast to molt into the juvenile. The puerulus stage is crucial to successful recruitment. Pueruli and the first instar juveniles of Jasus edwardsii collected from Castlepoint, New Zealand, were kept in tanks and their behavior was observed. Both the puerulus and the first instar juvenile were nocturnal, but their diel behavior differed considerably. At night most pueruli walked around on the bottom and occasionally swam forward in the water column using their pleopods, while most of the first instar juveniles walked around and never swam. In the day, the pueruli rested under stones or buried themselves shallowly in sand, while the first instar juveniles stayed in stones and rarely buried themselves in sand. Burying in sand in the day may be important for pueruli to avoid predation during their approach to the coast.