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Story: Tāwhirimātea – the weather

Rain clouds

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Rain clouds

Rain clouds loom over the Mackenzie Basin in the South Island. This kind of weather is called whakataritari ua – weather leading up to rain. Taru whakaru refers to damp, cloudy weather.

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Natural Sciences Image Library of New Zealand

Reference: En0752LC8.jpg

by John Hunt

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How to cite this page

Basil Keane, Tāwhirimātea – the weather – Rain, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/8276/rain-clouds (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Basil Keane, published 2 March 2009, updated 1 March 2022.