Case file · Folklore / legend
Araiteuru, guardian of the Hokianga
In Ngāpuhi tradition the taniwha Araiteuru guards the entrance of Hokianga Harbour, having come with the ancestral voyagers; the year is that of early published Māori traditions, not of the story.
1855 CE · -35.53, 173.38 · status: legend
The account
Her sons are said to have gouged out the harbour's branches. Te Ara, the national encyclopedia, describes taniwha as guardians (kaitiaki) of a tribe and its waters, as well as dangers to strangers.
The sceptical view
Taniwha belong to living Māori belief and often mark dangerous waters such as harbour bars; they are a matter of cultural respect, not zoology.