Mao Bird

Gymnomyza samoensis

Status: Endangered, declining population endemic to Samoan Islands

The Maori tell of Tane, son of the sky and the earth. Upon first arriving in New Zealand, the ancestors of the Maori found need of a worldview that included more than just the seas that had been their primary experience, but the land as well, and understanding of the mystery of the bush.

When earth and sky lay as lovers in one anothers' embrace, with nothing else but their naked beauty, Tane adorned his father heavens with stars. He looked to his mother and found her bare as well. Tane looked for and found a wife, and their offspring were the trees whose majestic beauty soon graced the earth. He took another wife, and their offspring were all the birds, nourished by the fertility of the forests.

Sometimes Tane is spoken of as being the direct personification of the trees, and they are his actual limbs, supporting the skies, and providing home, berries, and seeds for birds and for men.

References:
Jackson, Jake. "Polynesian Island Myths", Flame Tree Publishing, United Kingdom, 2020.

Best, Elsdon. "Maori Religion and Mythology Part 1". Shearer, A.R, Government Printer, New Zealand, 1976. https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-Bes01Reli-t1-body-d4-d4-d3.html

Cowan, James. "The Maori: Yesterday and Today". Whitcombe and Tombs Limited, 1930 Christchurch. https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-CowYest-t1-body-d1-d13.html