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Story: Te hī ika – Māori fishing

Identifying a fishing ground

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Identifying a fishing ground

This diagram shows how two distant mountain tops were used by fishermen to locate a fishing ground. The desired spot (E) lies at the intersection of two lines: one runs from peak A through a rock (C) on one side, and the other runs from peak B through an islet (D) on the other side.

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Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Reference: Elsdon Best, Fishing methods and devices of the Maori. Wellington: Dominion Museum, 1929, p. 112

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How to cite this page

Paul Meredith, Te hī ika – Māori fishing – Tools, grounds and methods, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/diagram/6804/identifying-a-fishing-ground (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Paul Meredith, published 2 March 2009.