Kōtuku, n. 1. Egretta alba modesta, white heron. He kotuku rerenga tahi i te tau. (A proverb used of a visitor who comes rarely.) Kotuku-ngutupapa, Platalea regia, royal spoonbill. Kōtuku-tawhiti and kōtuku-tea, varieties of potato.
2. Feathers of the heron. Maka iho te kotuku, te huia hei whakapaipai mona (T. 138).
3. An ornament of greenstone or bone, consisting of a spiral with a head at the outer end. = koropepe.
4. A stroke or guard with the quarter-staff or tokotoko.
Williams Dictionary