Australia’s crippling drought is turning Victorian backyards and farms into oases for species of birds usually only found in the nation’s remotest areas.

The "unprecedented" influx of species such as crimson chats and pied honeyeaters have birdwatchers flocking to Victoria’s relatively bountiful northern and Wimmera regions for a chance to spot them in the wild.

Crimson chats, usually only seen in arid areas, are flocking to Victoria Credit:Chris Tzaros

White-winged trillers, which are rarely sighted in southern Victoria, are also turning up in their hundreds around Melbourne’s suburbs.

Australian Birdlife editor Sean Dooley said it was believed the unusual sightings were the result of worsening drought destroying native habitats in Australia’s north and centre.