Kiwi have been wandering far from their homes to find food in Northland's dry conditions.

Kiwi are dying of dehydration and drowning in troughs and dams as they struggle to find food in Northland's dry conditions.

Young kiwi have been spotted out in the daytime and around residential backyards where they were vulnerable to dog attacks, Todd Hamilton, project manager of Whangārei Heads' Backyard Kiwi, said.

One young kiwi drowned in a polythene irrigation dam last Thursday, while an adult kiwi drowned in a horse water trough the week before, he said.

Kiwi normally get 99 per cent of their water from their food, but the dry conditions meant easy sources of worms and grubs were no longer available, he said.

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"It's extremely dry – it's been dry for 12 months now – and there's not so much food around."

Meanwhile, the Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre's Rob Webb told 1 News a kiwi had died of dehydration in a paddock.

Helen Moodie This young kiwi had to be moved from a residential area in Whangārei Heads to safer scrubland.

"She got out into the middle of a paddock [and the] sun comes up. She didn't know where to go," he said.

"She curled up in a ball and the sun just dried her out."

Webb told 1 News he had already had five dehydrated kiwi at his centre. Two had died but he hoped the remaining three would be OK.

Hamilton said the dry conditions have meant the adult kiwi, which normally have a couple of clutches of eggs, had stopped breeding.

But the chicks hatched in spring were getting into trouble trying to secure a feed, he said.

Todd Hamilton Backyard Kiwi The dry weather is causing young kiwi chicks at Whangārei Heads to take big risks while searching for food.

"They're only little. They're independent but they haven't got all the skills of the adult birds and they're a bit more adventurous."

Hamilton has moved a couple of young kiwi from residential areas into safer scrubland at Whangārei Heads.

He also urged people to control their dogs, including keeping them locked in at night and ensuring fences were kiwi-proof to stop the birds getting in.

"People are really good out here at controlling their dogs, but it's a bit hard when the kiwi are running through your backyard."

Hamilton also suggested farmers and lifestyle block owners put rocks or pieces of wood in their troughs, so kiwi could get out if they fell in.

"They can swim really well for a certain amount of time but if they can't get out they get too tired."

DEAN WRIGHT This kiwi was snapped out in the daytime in Kerikeri during the 2013 drought, showing how the native birds are put under extreme pressure to feed when conditions are dry.

Despite the mishaps and drownings, Hamilton was confident the kiwi population at Whangārei Heads was robust enough to withstand the big dry.

The Backyard Kiwi programme saw wild kiwi numbers at Whangārei Heads jump from 80 in 2001 to 900 in the present day.

Hamilton said much of that success was due to a successful predator control programme, including using 1080 in on-ground stations, and people controlling their dogs.

Figures released on Thursday showed Northland broke 16 records in 2019 relating to low rainfall and hot temperatures.