Story: Taupori Māori – Māori population change

Māori were quick to accept introduced livestock and crops like pigs and potatoes, which reduced their exposure to malnutrition and so increased their immunity to infection. This 1845 painting by Cyprian Bridge shows a fenced potato patch to the right of a pā – possibly Tāmati Wāka Nene's pā at Ōkaihau in Northland.