Much of the rest of the country is unusually dry, except for the western and lower South Island.
No one illustrates the devastating consequences of this long dry spell better than New Zealand's farmers, who are struggling with the lack of water and its implications to their livelihood, and the survival of cattle.
A post on the NZ Farming Facebook page, which has nearly 200,000 followers, asked people to share images of the situation where they live.
The photos in the comment depict the extent of the drought in the North Island and how shockingly different the landscape looks from your average February.
A photo taken in Feilding shows the same plot of land four weeks apart and the stark contrast after a month of no rain.
Another image shows the consequence of the lack of rain in Dannevirke.
Port Albert, in Wellsford, has turned brown after no rain for nearly two months, and counting.
Another commenter on the thread shared an image of a dry creek in Hawkes Bay.
Cows are not getting a lot in Katikati, Bay of Plenty.
A commenter from Coroglen says he's never seen anything like it in 48 years.
An image from Kaeo, Northland, shows the effects of the drought in the area.
More than 200 photos were submitted to the thread, revealing the sheer scale of the drought across the North Island, and in some spots in the South Island as well.
