NATURAL HISTORY. 
605 
The seal, fam. Phocidce, was once very abundant in all the 
New Zealand isles, but especially in the middle one. In 
1811, a sealer procured a cargo of 80,000 skins from the 
Macquarie Islands. The morse, or sea lion, Platyrhynchus 
leoninus, wakahao, was found in the Middle Island, it is 
described as being the size of a cow, of a red color, very 
savage and powerful, as a proof of which, the natives state 
that formerly one of their warriors was put to flight by one 
of these animals, although he was attended by a party of 
seventy, hence the proverb, Te hoa JcaJcari o Te Wera, he 
waka-hao — The angry foe of Te Wera was a sea lion. 
The sea bear, Arcto cephalus ursinus, rapoka , came next in 
point of size, the native way of capturing it was by throwing 
sand into its eyes, and whilst striving to free itself from the 
annoyance they fell upon and killed it. 
The common seal, Phoca Yitulina, mimiha, kekeno , was 
once very numerous, the names of its haunts are still retained, 
but it is now seldom seen. Its remains are found in every 
shell heap along the New Zealand shores, mingled with those 
of birds, fish, dogs, and men ; it is now confined entirely to 
the south. The natives speak of another kind of seal, to 
which they give the name of Waitoreke, and describe it as a 
large and long animal.* 
* A Chief came to me one day, and inquired whether there were men and 
women living in the sea. I demanded the reason of the question being put to 
me. He said, that whilst a boat’s crew was going for the Rev. Mr. Reay, in 
Cloudy Bay, a figure suddenly appeared in the water, at a distance of about 
three yards ; they left off rowing, and gazed at it for a long time ; it resembled 
a black man of the usual size, but was bald on the head, and with mustaches 
sticking out about four inches. As they approached, it laid on the water like a 
log, and one said it was a log, another that it was a kumete , or large wooden 
bowl, turned upside down ; but, as they drew near, it rose up, and appeared to be 
a black man, as far as the waist ; it looked stedfastly at them, and kept puffing 
with his mouth : it was a perfect man, only bald, and had a queer stiff- looking 
mustache ; one proposed to throw a rope round it, and pull it into the boat; 
another said, No, it is a taniwa (sea god), and will smash the boat ; it continued 
looking at them, and puffing for about an hour, and then went down ; they 
told Mr. Reay of it, and said they had never seen such a creature before, and 
asked whether we pakehas had. I asked whether it was not a seal ; they said 
no, it was a perfect man as far as the waist — the lower part was concealed in 
the water. — From Tamihana , 1847. 
