In the Polynesian mythology of the Tuamotu archipelago in the South Pacific, Puna is the king of Hiti-marama or of Vavau, depending on the story. In one story, Vahieroa weds Matamata-taua, also called Tahiti To‘erau. On the night of their son Rata's birth, the parents go fishing. They are snatched away by the demon bird belonging to the Puna, king of Hiti-marama, "an island north of [present-day] Pitcairn and Elizabeth but long since swallowed in the sea." The bird Matatata‘ota‘o bites off the chief's head and swallows it whole. The wife is placed head downward as a food holder in the house of Puna's wife Te-vahine-hua-rei (Beckwith 1970:261).