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Kaikoura - History
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In Maori legend, Maui placed his
foot on the Kaikoura peninsula to steady himself while he 'fished-up' the
North Island. Archaeological remains indicate that Moa Hunters inhabited the
peninsula 900 years ago.
The Maori name Kaikoura translates to 'meal of crayfish' (Kai - food, koura
- crayfish), and it is crayfish for which the region has traditionally been
famous. The area's abundant food sources attracted Maori settlement, and the
remains of several pa sites can still seen on the peninsula to this day.
In 1770 Captain Cook first discovered the Kaikoura peninsula, believing it
to be an island. The first shore whaling station was established in 1843,
located near where Fyffe House still stands today. Other whaling stations
soon followed, and at one stage the industry employed over one hundred men
in the Kaikoura district alone. Whale numbers steadily declined after 1850
and the exportation of them became un-economic, leading whalers to turn to
alternative means of existence, such as farming. Whaling continued
sporadically until as recently as 1964 when the last of NZ' s whaling
operations ceased.
In 1978, the Marine Mammal Protection Act was finally passed, providing
total protection to New Zealand' s whales, dolphins and seals. Today
Kaikoura lies in the Southern Hemisphere Whale Santuary. |
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