Nightmarks in Waikato
3 nightmarks documented
Cryptids
The Moehau Man — New Zealand's bipedal cryptid of the Coromandel Peninsula
Moehau Range, Coromandel Peninsula, New Zealand
A red-eyed, hair-covered bipedal hominid of the Coromandel Peninsula — present in Māori oral tradition since before European contact and in settler sightings since 1882.
Ghosts & Hauntings
Waitomo Glowworm Caves — the subterranean apparitions of King Country
Waitomo Glowworm Caves, King Country, New Zealand·1887
North Island's limestone glowworm caves — Ngāti Maniapoto sacred site since before 1500 — produce persistent reports of voices, apparitions, and the ghost of 1880s surveyor Fred Mace.
Folklore & Legends
Taniwha — the water-guardian spirits of New Zealand's rivers, lakes, and coasts
Waikato River, North Island, New Zealand
Māori water-guardian spirits inhabiting specific rivers, lakes, and coasts of New Zealand — legally consequential enough to re-route highways and rail tunnels.