Best. — Maori Forest Lore. 269 



forest ranges of Parahaki, on the head-waters of the Waiau River, where 

 no man liveth. In former times they were taken by means of a call-leaf 

 by fowlers, but not in great numbers. They were, of course, eaten by 

 these bushmen. The blue wattles of this bird are termed werewere kokako, 

 a name also applied to a blue-coloured fungoid growth that is found growing 

 on trees. Natives say that when a crow sees this blue object he goes and 

 rubs the sides of his head on it. 



A flock of crows is termed a ta kokako. An old saying is " Te ta kokako 

 a Ira-motumotu " (The crow flock of Ira-motumotu)^whereby hangs a tale. 

 Ira-motumotu was an ancestor of the Tuhoe people, and it fell upon a 

 certain fine night that Ira's wife went a-fishing for the simple kokopu. She 

 brought some home alive in her puivai, or fish-basket. Ira opened the 

 basket and the fish promptly jumped out. Here endeth the first canto. 

 Anon, in days that followed, Ira went a-fowling, and snared some crows, 

 the which he secured alive in a basket and carried home to his wife. He 

 told her to cook them, and she, simple creature, opened the basket, where- 

 upon the crows all escaped, and flew away far beyond all beck and call. She 

 made wild clutches at the escaping birds, but never again did she handle 

 those crows. Hence Ira's ta kokako has passed down the changing genera- 

 tions as a synonym for the unattainable. Again, when Te Whakatohea 

 raided Rua-tahuna they pursued one Manu-ka-tiu with the pious intention 

 of slaying, cooking, and eating him. One who knew Manu's fleetness of 

 foot said, " You will never catch that man. Just think of his name — ' the 

 Soaring Bird.' " One replied, " Ka rere ia ki hea i te ta kokako a Kotikoti " 

 (How may he escape from the crows of Kotikoti ?) However, the Soaring 

 Bird did escape, and warned Rua-tahuna ; hence the night attack on and 

 defeat of Te Whakatohea at Tatahoata, .where their chief, Te Piki, furnished 

 a breakfast for the Child of Tamatea. 



Anent the origin of the kokako — it was in this wise : In Maori myth 

 both the kokako and the pakura (syn., pukeko) are the offspring or descend- 

 ants of an old-time tipua (supernatural being) known as Wairua-kokako,. 

 or Hine-wairua-kokako. 



Koko ; syn., Tui {Prosthemadera novcB-zealandice ; Parson-bird). — The 

 origin of this bird was a singular one, according to Maori myth. The koko 

 bird and the inanga fish (under various names) are both said to be the 

 offspring of Rehua (Antares). In one sense the name Rehua is applied to 

 the constellation Scorpio, except the Scorpion's Tail, which is Te Waka o 

 Tama-rereti. For Rehua is often alluded to as a bird. The curved line 

 of stars extending eastward from Antares is one of his wings — the unbroken 

 one, or paihau ora. The other wing of Rehua is broken, as may be seen 

 if you look at the broken line of stars just westward of Antares. This is 

 the paihau tvhati or broken wing of Rehua. Old Pio, of Awa, said, " There 

 is an ancestor roaming across the heavens : it is Rehua. That ancestor 

 is a bird, and has one broken wing and one sound one. His children are 

 the koko bird and the inanga. Those are the offspring of Rehua. The koko 

 bird is with his ancestor Tane {i.e., is a denizen of the forest). This bird 

 provides food for man, the rich huahua, only eaten on important occasions 

 or by chiefs, often kept for ritual and social feasts. You cannot equal 

 huahua as a food ; it is unrivalled." 



In the mythical story of Rupe we may note that when that hero visited 

 Rehua in the uppermost or tenth heaven Rehua shook the koko birds out 

 of his hair, where they fed upon parasites (kutu), and had them cooked as 

 food for Rupe. 



