Hakawai, also Hōkioi in the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

, was to the

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Māori people Māori () are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand. Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of Māori migration canoes, c ...

, a

mythological Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

that was sometimes heard but not usually seen. It is now associated with the nocturnal aerial displays made by ''

Coenocorypha The austral snipes, also known as the New Zealand snipes or tutukiwi, are a genus, ''Coenocorypha'', of tiny birds in the sandpiper family (biology), family, which are now only found on New Zealand outlying islands, New Zealand's outlying islands ...

'' snipe.

Mythology

Māori mythology Māori mythology and Māori traditions are two major categories into which the remote oral history of New Zealand's Māori people, Māori may be divided. Māori myths concern tales of supernatural events relating to the origins of what was the ...

the Hakawai was one of eleven tapu (sacred) birds of

Raka-maomao Raka-maomao or Rakamaomao, in Māori mythology, is a god of wind. He is the god of ordinary winds, in contrast to Tāwhirimātea, who is the god of tempests. To the Waitaha tribe of the South Island, Rakamaomao was the group of winds that blew f ...

, a god of wind. The Hakawai lived in the heavens and only descended to the earth at night. It was considered to be a gigantic

bird of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as (although not the same as) raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively predation, hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and smaller birds). In addition to speed ...

and was described (as the Hōkioi) by a

Ngāti Apa Ngāti Apa is a Māori iwi (tribe) in Rangitikei District of New Zealand. Its rohe (traditional tribal lands) extend between the Mangawhero, Whangaehu, Turakina and Rangitīkei rivers. This area is bounded by Whanganui River in the north-west ...

chief, to the Governor of New Zealand Sir

George Grey Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Gov ...

, as: Hearing the Hakawai was considered to be a bad omen, traditionally presaging war.

Ornithologists __NOTOC__ This is a list of ornithologists who have articles, in alphabetical order by surname. See also :Ornithologists. A * John Abbot – US * Clinton Gilbert Abbott – US * William Louis Abbott – US * Humayun Abdulali — India * Joseph ...

in New Zealand have wondered whether the myth related to a real bird, whether extinct or still living, with some claiming that the myth was inspired by the now extinct

Haast's eagle Haast's eagle (''Hieraaetus moorei'') is an Extinction, extinct species of eagle that lived in the South Island of New Zealand, commonly accepted to be the of Māori mythology.

(''Hieraaetus moorei''). Although mention of the Hakawai occurred in Māori mythology throughout New Zealand, since European settlement of the main islands direct experience of the Hakawai – through hearing the sounds it made – was largely restricted to the

Muttonbird Islands Muttonbird or mutton bird may refer to species of petrel, especially shearwaters, whose young are harvested for food and other uses before they fledge in Australia and New Zealand. The English term "muttonbird" originally emerged among settlers on ...

, several small islands in the vicinity of

Foveaux Strait Foveaux Strait ( ; ) is a strait that separates Stewart Island from the South Island of New Zealand. The width of the strait ranges from about , and the depth varies between . The strait was first charted by an American Seal hunting, sealer, O ...

and

Stewart Island Stewart Island (, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura, formerly New Leinster) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a la ...

, in the far south of New Zealand. The Muttonbird Islands have no permanent human residents but are visited seasonally, from mid-March to the end of May, for

muttonbirding Muttonbirding is the seasonal harvesting of the chicks of petrels, especially shearwater species, for food, oil and feathers by recreational or commercial hunters. Such hunting of petrels and other seabirds has occurred in various locations sin ...

– the harvesting of

sooty shearwater The sooty shearwater (''Ardenna grisea'') is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand, it is also known by its Māori language, Māori name , and is harvested by Māori people for muttonbirding, muttonbird, l ...

chicks for food and oil. There the sound ascribed to the Hakawai was described as having two main components, the first part being vocal, a call rendered as ''hakwai, hakwai, hakwai'', followed by a non-vocal roar as of an object travelling through the air at high speed. It was heard on calm, moonlit nights and appeared to come from a great height.Miskelly (1987).

Investigation

During the 1980s ornithologist Dr Colin Miskelly, who was studying the New Zealand

snipe A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/ camouflaging plumage. ''Gallinago'' snipe have a nearly ...

genus ''Coenocorypha'', after hearing and recording the aerial display of the

Chatham snipe The Chatham Islands snipe (''Coenocorypha pusilla''), also known as the Chatham snipe, is a species of wader in the family Scolopacidae. It is endemic to the Chatham Islands of New Zealand, and is only found on a few islands in the south of th ...

(''C. pusilla''), investigated the possibility that the sounds attributed to the Hakawai in the Muttonbird Islands were made by the recently

extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

South Island snipe The South Island snipe (''Coenocorypha iredalei''), also known as the Stewart Island snipe or tutukiwi in Māori, is an extinct species of bird in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae that was endemic to New Zealand. Taxonomy and etymology Determ ...

(''Coenocorypha iredalei''), then usually called the Stewart Island snipe and considered to be a subspecies of the subantarctic snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica''), a small, unobtrusive, brown bird some 21–24 cm in length. Miskelly interviewed several muttonbirders who had memories of hearing the distinctive sounds of the Hakawai. He found that its apparent range had steadily decreased over the years to the early 1960s when it was heard no more. The non-vocal sounds made by the Hakawai were described variously as "a sound as if a cable chain was lowered into a boat" a "

jet-stream Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow air currents in the Earth's atmosphere. The main jet streams are located near the altitude of the tropopause and are westerly winds, flowing west to east around the globe. The northern hemisphere and th ...

", a " blind rolling itself up" or "a

shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

passing overhead". The reaction to the sounds by those who heard it was generally one of fright. The decrease towards extinction paralleled that of the South Island snipe, of which the Muttonbird Islands were the final refuge, with the islands being progressively occupied by

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include '' Neotoma'' (pack rats), '' Bandicota'' (bandicoo ...

feral cat A feral cat or a stray cat is an unowned domestic cat (''Felis catus'') that lives outdoors and avoids human contact; it does not allow itself to be handled or touched, and usually remains hidden from humans. Feral cats may breed over dozens ...

s and

weka The weka, also known as the Māori hen or woodhen (''Gallirallus australis'') is a flightless bird species of the rail family. It is endemic to New Zealand. Some authorities consider it as the only extant member of the genus '' Gallirallus''. ...

. The last known individuals of the snipe died in 1964 on

Big South Cape Island Taukihepa / Big South Cape Island is an offshore island of New Zealand to the west of the southern tip of Stewart Island / Rakiura. The island is the largest of the Tītī / Muttonbird Islands, and as such has no permanent inhabitants but is vi ...

following the accidental introduction of

black rat The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is n ...

s there. Snipe in the genera ''

Gallinago ''Gallinago'' is a genus of birds in the wader family Scolopacidae, containing 18 species. Taxonomy The name ''Gallinago'' was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760 as a subdivision of the genus ''Scolopax''. Bri ...

'' and ''

Lymnocryptes The jack snipe or jacksnipe (''Lymnocryptes minimus'') is a small stocky wader. It is the smallest snipe, and the Monotypic taxon, only member of the genus ''Lymnocryptes''. Features such as its sternum and its continuous 'bobbing up and down' m ...

'', as well as the closely related woodcocks '' Scolopax'', make

courtship display A courtship display is a set of display behaviors in which an animal, usually a male, attempts to attract a mate; the mate exercises choice, so sexual selection acts on the display. These behaviors often include ritualized movement ("dances"), ...

flights, at dusk and on moonlit nights, producing mechanical sounds called "

drumming Drumming may refer to: * the act of playing the drums or other percussion instruments * Drummer, a musician who plays a drum, drum kit, or drums * ''Drumming'' (Reich), a musical composition written by Steve Reich in 1971 for percussion ensemble ...

", "bleating" or "winnowing", through the vibration of their modified outer tail feathers caused by the rush of air in the course of a power dive. Of his research in the

Chatham Islands The Chatham Islands ( ; Moriori language, Moriori: , 'Misty Sun'; ) are an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean about east of New Zealand's South Island, administered as part of New Zealand, and consisting of about 10 islands within an approxima ...

Miskelly wrote: and: Examination of museum skins from

bird collections Bird collections are curated repositories of scientific Biological specimen, specimens consisting of birds and their parts. They are a research resource for ornithology, the science of birds, and for other scientific disciplines in which informa ...

showed such characteristic wear of the tail feathers on male snipe from the Chatham Islands (''C. pusilla''), islands off Stewart Island (''C. iredalei''), the

Auckland Islands The Auckland Islands ( Māori: ''Motu Maha'' "Many islands" or ''Maungahuka'' "Snowy mountains") are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying , is surrounded by smaller Adams Island ...

('' C. aucklandica aucklandica''), and the

Antipodes Islands The Antipodes Islands (, ) are inhospitable and uninhabited volcanic islands in subantarctic waters to the south of – and territorially part of – New Zealand. The archipelago lies to the southeast of Stewart Island / Rakiura, and to the ...

('' C. a. meinertzhagenae''). Since then the same kind of tail-feather wear has been found on snipe from the

Snares Islands The Snares Islands (; officially Snares Islands / Tini Heke), known colloquially as The Snares, is a group of uninhabited islands lying about south of New Zealand's South Island and to the south-southwest of Stewart Island / Rakiura. The Snar ...

('' C. huegeli''),Charteris & Miskelly (2005). and Hakawai displays have been heard in the Auckland and Antipodes Islands, as well as from the newly described

Campbell snipe The Campbell snipe (''Coenocorypha aucklandica perseverance''), also known as the Campbell Island snipe, is a rare subspecies of the Subantarctic snipe, endemic to Campbell Island, a subantarctic island south of New Zealand in the Southern Oc ...

(''C. a. perseverance'') on Campbell Island.Miskelly et al. (2006).

References

Notes

Sources

* * * * {{cite journal , author1=Miskelly, Colin M. , author2=Bell, Elizabeth A. , author3=Elliott, Graeme P. , author4=Walker, Kath J. , year=2006 , title='Hakawai' aerial displaying by three populations of subantarctic snipe (genus ''Coenocorypha'') , journal=Notornis , volume=53 , issue=4 , pages=375–381 , doi=10.63172/368966jasdtq , url=http://www.notornis.org.nz/abstract.php?volume_issue=n53_4&first_page=375 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081016055219/http://www.notornis.org.nz/abstract.php?volume_issue=n53_4&first_page=375 , archive-date=2008-10-16 Coenocorypha Māori legendary creatures Birds in mythology Bird sonation Bird sounds