Tradition / Region: Māori, New Zealand Mythology
Alternative names: Kurungaituku; Hine-ingoingo
Category: Bird
The Myth
Kurangaituku is a supernatural woman with the wings of a bird, claws instead of fingers, and a beak in place of a human mouth. She is the guardian of birds and other creatures, keeping them in her forest home. In some traditions she is feared as an ogress or witch, while in others she is remembered as a compassionate being who shelters injured animals and nurses the wounded back to health.
One day the young hunter Hatupatu entered her domain. In some versions she captured him after he hunted her birds, while in others she found him injured and cared for him until he recovered. Hatupatu lived with her for a time, but eventually betrayed her by destroying or imprisoning her beloved birds and reptiles and stealing her treasured feather cloaks before fleeing.
A single small bird escaped and warned Kurangaituku of the betrayal. She pursued Hatupatu through the forests with incredible speed. During the chase, Hatupatu called upon a great rock to open and hide him, escaping her grasp. When he reached the geothermal lands of Whakarewarewa, he dodged between the boiling mud pools, but Kurangaituku rushed after him and was consumed by the scalding mud, bringing the pursuit to its tragic end.
In some Māori traditions, however, Kurangaituku is remembered not as a monster but as the wronged guardian of the forest, whose kindness was repaid with betrayal. Her story remains one of the best-known legends of New Zealand, preserving both versions of her character in Māori oral tradition.
Sources
Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Kurangaituku. In Wikipedia. Retrieved June 29, 2026, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurangaituku