CAMELS-NZ: Hydrometeorological times series and landscape attributes for catchments in New Zealand

The first large-sample catchment hydrology dataset for Aotearoa New Zealand, the Catchment Attributes and Meteorology for Large-Sample Studies—New Zealand (CAMELS-NZ), provides hourly hydrometeorological time series and detailed landscape attributes for 373 catchments across New Zealand. Spanning over the years 1972 to 2024, this dataset includes hourly records of streamflow, precipitation, temperature, and potential evapotranspiration. CAMELS-NZ offers a detailed set of catchment attributes that quantify physical characteristics such as land cover, soil properties, geology, topography, and human impacts. CAMELS-NZ integrates high-resolution time series data with static catchment characteristics, enabling the study of fast-rising rivers common in New Zealand. This dataset supports a wide range of hydrological research applications, including model development and climate impact assessments, prediction in ungauged basins and large-sample comparative studies. We include anthropogenic attributes on the presence of abstractions, dams, quality of rating and influences such as groundwater, snow or ephemeral rivers. CAMELS-NZ offers an opportunity to study hydrological processes in volcanic and alpine environments, while filling a critical gap of data in the Pacific region.