The Hatchet

Brian Robertson, sole passenger on a Cessna 406, is on his way to visit his father when the tiny bush plane crashes in the Canadian wilderness. With nothing but his clothing, a tattered windbreaker and the hatchet his mother had given him as a present, Brian finds himself completely alone.
Challenged by his fear and despair — and plagued with the weight of a dreadful secret he's been keeping since his parent's divorce — Brian must tame his inner demons in order to survive. It will take all his know-how and determination, and more courage than he knew he possessed.

Hatchets are often described as a small axe that can be utilized with the use of one hand rather than two. Featuring a handle that is often half the length of a standard axe handle, the hatchet is a handy tool that can be used for a number of smaller jobs, such as cutting through thick shrubs or small limbs. Along with use in woodcutting, the hatchet has historically been used for other tasks around the home, as well as a weapon.

Matariki

Matariki is the Maori name for the group of stars also known as the Pleiades star cluster or the Seven Sisters and what is referred to as the traditional Maori New Year. The Maori New Year is marked by the rise of Matariki and the sighting of the next new moon. The pre-dawn rise of Matariki can be seen in the last few days of May every year and the New Year is marked at the sighting of the next new moon which occurs during June. Matariki events occur throughout New Zealand and the timing of the events varies depending on Iwi and geographical differences.

When is matariki?
In the final days of May each year, a cluster of tiny stars intermittently twinkles as it rises on the north east horizon. To astronomers this constellation is known as Pleiades but to the Māori people of New Zealand, it is Matariki - a celestial signal of an ending and a beginning.

Why is it celebrated?
Matariki is the Māori name for the small cluster of stars also known as the Pleiades or the Seven Sisters, in the Taurus constellation. In New Zealand it comes into view low on the north-eastern horizon, appearing in the tail of the Milky Way in the last days of May or in early June, just before dawn. This heralds the Māori New Year.
Various Māori tribes celebrated Matariki at different times. Some held festivities when Matariki was first seen in the dawn sky; others celebrated after the full moon rose or at the beginning of the next new moon.

For all tribes, the importance of Matariki has been captured in proverbs and songs, which link it with the bright star

The white kiwi chick

Named Manukura by local iwi Rangitane o Wairarapa, the chick is not an albino but the rare progeny of kiwi that were transferred to Pukaha from Hauturu/Little Barrier Island last year.

“As far as we know, this is the first all-white chick to be hatched in captivity,” said Pukaha Mount Bruce Board chairman, Bob Francis. “The intention of the transfer was to increase the kiwi gene pool at Pukaha and grow the population in the long-term. The kiwi population on Little Barrier Island hasbirds with white markings and some white kiwi, but this was still a big surprise.” No white kiwi were brought to Pukaha.

“This first breeding season involving the Little Barrier kiwi has far exceeded expectations,” Bob Francis said. “Faster breeding is exactly what was intended by the transfer, but were blown away by the number of chicks produced so quickly.” Compared to this season’s 14 chicks, between 2005 and 2010 a total of 10 chicks were hatched and returned to the forest.

Rangitane chief executive and Pukaha board member, Jason Kerehi, said tribal elders saw the white chick as a ‘tohu’ or ‘sign’ of new beginnings. “Every now and then something extraordinary comes along to remind you of how special life is. While we’re celebrating all 14 kiwi hatched this year, Manukura is a very special gift.”

Darren Page, DOC Captive Breeding Ranger at Pukaha Mount Bruce and Jason Kerehi of Rangitane o Wairarapa with Manukura, the rare white kiwi chick hatched at Pukaha Mount Bruce on 1 May 2011.
Darren Page, DOC Captive Breeding Ranger at Pukaha Mount Bruce and Jason Kerehi of Rangitane o Wairarapa with Manukura, the rare white kiwi chick hatched at Pukaha Mount Bruce on 1 May 2011

Meaning ‘of chiefly status’ the Maori name Manukura also joins the Rangitane people with Ngati Manuhiri, the tribe from Little Barrier Island which helped transfer the 30 kiwi to Pukaha. ‘Kurahaupo’ was a Rangitane waka or canoe. ‘Manu’ means something of high rank and also a bird. Kura means ‘precious’ and also ‘feather’.

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