Story highlights The raised beaches could stay that way, or drop back down in another quake

New Zealand gets quakes often because it sits between Indo-Australian and Pacific tectonic plates

(CNN) The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit New Zealand this week lifted the seabed two meters, leaving seaweed-covered rocks and marine animals exposed above tide level.

Incredible photographs show the extent of the devastation on South Island's coastline from Monday's quake.

"Much of the northeastern coast of the South Island was uplifted during the earthquake. We know this from photos of rock platforms covered in seaweed and marine animals such as crayfish and paua (sea snails) stranded above tide levels," GNS Science, a New Zealand government-owned research institute, said in a report.

Researchers estimate that the coast was raised between 0.5 m and 2 meters in the northeastern region of the South Island, from about 20 km south of the town of Kaikoura all the way north to Cape Campbell. Photographs posted on social media also show how roads in the area were destroyed.

New Zealand is regularly hit by earthquakes because it sits in between the Indo-Australian and Pacific tectonic plates. A series of powerful quakes jolted the South Island Monday, triggering a tsunami and sending aftershocks across the country that left at least two dead, officials said.

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