Tauranga experienced an especially dry month with less than 30 per cent the normal May rainfall recorded in the region.

According to the latest climate summary from NIWA, May was characterised by lower pressures than normal to the south and west of New Zealand, with slightly higher than normal pressures to the north of the country.

The MetService is predicting slightly warmer temperatures in Tauranga than last week.

'This pressure pattern resulted in an anomalous westerly flow over most of the country, bringing considerable rainfall to western and southern parts of the South Island, but relatively dry and sunny conditions for much of the North Island,” says the report.

The North Island saw above average mean temperatures (0.5 degrees Celsius to 1.2 degrees Celsius), with the nationwide average for the month of May being 11.4 degrees Celsius – which is 0.7 degrees Celsius above the 1971-2000 May average from NIWA's seven station temperature series which began in 1909.

NIWA says May was a particularly sunny month for most of the North Island, with well above normal – more than 125 per cent of May normal – or above normal with 110-124 per cent of May normal recorded.

'Of the six main centres in May 2014, Tauranga was the driest and sunniest, Auckland was the warmest, Hamilton was the wettest, Christchurch was the coolest and Dunedin was the cloudiest.

'Of the available, regularly reporting sunshine observation sites, the sunniest four centres so far in 2014 are: Whakatane [1262 hours], Tauranga [1153 hours], Auckland-Albany [1090 hours] and Takaka [1077 hours].”

Looking ahead to June, the MetService is predicting temperatures to lift as slightly warmer air from the northwest returns to the region.

Despite the warmer air, the weather organisation is warning people to prepare for some clear and cold nights forecast for parts of the country in the next few days.

'During the week, the high is likely to pull away to the northeast of the country as a weakening front moves onto the South Island,” says MetService meteorologist John Law.

'The recent cold outbreak brought some snow to the South Island ranges and the top of Mount Ruapehu.”