Best. — Maori Forest Lore. 237 



of this species on the large house Te Whai-a-te-motu, at Rua-tahuna, shows 

 it of a short, squat form. It is said to be of a mottled colour. One very 

 old man stated that it is about i in. or 5 in. in length, has a rough 

 {wheketvheke) skin, and is light-coloured. Natives state that this lizard 

 is the parent of the small cuckoo {pipiwharauroa). Another authority says 

 that a kind of maggot found under the young chicks of the tihe bird in 

 the nest develops into the moko-tapiri, which difi'ers much in appearance 

 from the moko-kakariki, and is much feared by the Maori people. 



The moko-parae is said to be another name for the vioko-kakariki. 



The tara-kumukumu is said to be a species of lizard somewhat resembling 

 a moko-parae, but it may be a marine creature. It has an unpleasant habit 

 of afflicting mankind, and any complaint that causes a swelling in the region 

 of the tliio'hs is attributed to it. This lizard is never seen now. It is some- 

 times confused with the kumukiimu, a sea-fish, but the evidence is not clear. 



Lizards are said in Maori myth to be the offspring of one Punga, who 

 was a descendant of Tangaroa ; hence the term te aitanga a Punga (offspring 

 of Punga) is applied to reptiles. It is also applied to very dark-skinned 

 or ugly, ill-favoured persons. The immediate offspring of Punga were Tu-te- 

 wehiwehi, Tu-te-wanawana, and Kumukumu, the latter being a sea-fish. In 

 Maori fable the latter adopts the ocean as its home, while the two former, 

 representing lizards, keep to their land home. Hence the lizard said to the 

 kumukumu (gurnard), " Go on your way to the ocean, but soon I shall see 

 you caught and cooked for food." " Not so," remarked the latter, " but I 

 shall see you destroyed by fire when the fern lands are burned." The lizard 

 replied, " No one will injure me, for all will fear me on account of my 

 appearance." 



Lizards are sometimes seen in the Native wood-carvings. One is so 

 seen on a parata on a food-store known as Te Hau-o-puanui, at Rua-tahuna. 

 In this case a lizard is hanging from the mouth of a carved human head, 

 as though it were to replace the tongue. The tail of the lizard is in the 

 mouth, while the fore part of the body, the fore feet, and head hang down 

 below the chin. In the house Te Whai-a-te-motu, hard by, is the carved 

 figure representing an ancestor named Kahu-tarata, which has a lizard 

 hanging from the mouth in the same way. This ancestor is said to have 

 been a noted eater of lizards. 



" Kg Putauaki te kainga, he ngarara tana kai " (Putauaki is the place 

 where reptiles are eaten). This is an old saying applied to Mount Edge- 

 cumbe and its environs, on account of the scarcity of food there. Tuatara 

 were formerly collected for food, placed in baskets, and taken alive to the 

 village, where they were cooked and eaten. " If women of the party ate 

 of the tuatara they would suffer for it, and probably perish, for they would 

 be assailed by many lizards of that species." So sayeth the Maori. 



" Ko te kekerewai, ko te tuatara nga kai o Wai-o-hau " [Kekerewai and 

 tuatara were the foods of the Wai-o-hau district), said an old Native to 

 the writer. The former is the small green beetle found on manuka bushes 

 in summer. 



Lizards were sometimes selected as guardians of property or places in 

 former times, presumably on account of the dread the Natives had of them. 

 In some cases a lizard would be located on a tree much frequented by birds, 

 in order to guard it against poachers ; or one was stationed near the forest 

 mauri in order to protect or guard the same. In giving evidence in the 

 Rau-ngaehe Block case Te Kaha said, " Te Purewa had a tutu (tree on which 

 birds are snared) at Te Rua-ngarara, near Taumata-miere. A stage was 



