Maui and the Eagle

Maui was hunting for a koru to boil for breakfast, he moved through the thick, fleshy leaves. He was searching through totara trees as tall as elephants, the sun was scorching as the breeze exhaled camly. The insects and the bugs marched in a rhythmic beat but there were no birds chirping, no birds flying in the peaceful sky at all. Only a mighty eagle, “I need to catch that eagle” Maui exclaimed. Maui spotted the eagle with his sharp eyes, Maui might have been  short but he was wise, he knew that the eagle was very threatening and ferocious. The eagle also had very sharp eyes.

The eagle swooped down and tried to bite Maui’s finger off “You won’t bite me, silly eagle” Maui murmured. The mighty eagle tried again this time the eagle didn’t miss, he managed to bite Maui’s finger off “hahaha I can’t believe it I’ve bit Maui’s finger off” The eagle burst into laughter. Maui was tremendously mad “I’ll get that eagle” he said.

“I know what I can do to capture that eagle” thought Maui. Maui walked without distraction to the top of a mountain. Maui drew his fish hook from his belt and threw it like a spear towards the eagle. The hook hit the eagle hard causing it to quak in agony “quak quak quak arghhh”. The great eagle fell to the ground. Maui took his tewhatewha and cut the eagle into three segments…

Maui sang a karakia and one by one the segments shot off into different directions. The head of the eagle became the kereru that flew into the branches of the kauri trees. The middle section became the ground birds kiwi, weka and pukeko and the eagles tail became the prey of birds, the insects. That is the story of how birds came to New Zealand.