They are believed to live in deep forests and hilly or mountainous regions, in large guarded communities,[1] though their buildings and structures are invisible to human eyes.
[5][6] It has been theorised that when the first European explorers clashed with Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri (of the Kurahaupō) during mid-December 1642, the iwi may have interpreted the newcomers as patupaiarehe.
[11] Hinerehia hailed from Moehau Range and fell in love with a Māori man who she met while gathering shellfish on a misty low tide in the Waitematā Harbour.
Hinerehia wove only at night; frustrated by this, the women of the village asked the tohunga to trick her into weaving past dawn so that they could learn the skill.
One man tried to carry the calabash back but it was so heavy that he almost passed out from the weight; he constantly needed to rest, so they discarded it and continued to their village.
Īhenga drank water proffered in a calabash, then, sensing a trap, fled the mountain in hot pursuit, only escaping the patupaiarehe by smearing foul-smelling shark oil on his skin.
James Cowan suggested that if the patupaiarehe did exist they might have been descendants of an early South Island iwi called Hāwea, whose skin was described as 'ruddy or copper-coloured'.
[4] According to Hōne Taare Tīkao, they inhabited the hills of Banks Peninsula and in the heights above Lyttelton Harbour on mountains and ranges such as Poho-o-Tamatea immediately behind Rāpaki Bay; Te Pohue, between Purau and Port Levy; Hukuika Peak, between Pigeon Bay and Little River; Te U-kura near Hilltop, Banks Peninsula; and the high, rocky peaks of French Hill; O-te-hore, above French Farm; O-te-patatu (Purple Peak), Tara-te-rehu, and Otaki, all which overlook Akaroa, and lastly Tuhiraki (Mt Bossu).
[14] Kāi Tahu tradition, as recounted by Tikao, states that patupaiarehe drove the titi to extinction on O-te-patatu due to overexploitation.
[4] In a story recounted from Hone Te Paina of Oraka, Foveaux Strait;[4] on the Tākitimu Mountains there haunts a woman patupaiarehe named Kaiheraki, who appears as a spectrelike giantess striding along the mountaintops on misty days.
While out hunting with his dog (kurī), Hautapu heard a 'sharp metallic noise' which sounded like two pieces of pounamu being hit together.
At first he suspected it to be a takahē, but just as he was about to go and investigate, he noticed a pair of dark gleaming eyes against a pale-white face staring back at him from behind a bush, with just 'a glint of coppery hair'.
Hautapu took her by her exposed shoulder and brought her out into the sunlight, and right then and there claimed her as his wife on account of her appearance; tall, young, fair-skinned, full and round 'erect breasts', broad vigorous hips, 'generous curves', sturdy limbs, and flowing thick hair which 'shone with a ruddy bronze tint in the sun.'
Kaiheraki gasped in amazement at the sight of the smoke and fire once it had actually been started, but a tiny spark of the flame jumped onto her bare foot and immediately spurt forth a thin stream of blood.