The recently active basaltic Kaikohe-Bay of Islands volcanic field in the Northland region of New Zealand is associated geographically with an older region of extinct volcanism to its north the Wairakau Volcanic Centre, meaning eruptions in this region have occurred over the last 20 million years.

[1] All the cones older than 2 million years have eroded away, leaving plateaus from Ōkaihau to Kerikeri and north to Whangaroa from the old andesite/dacite stratovolcanoes of the Wairakau Volcanic Centre and the ten million year old or more recent volcanoes in field towards the south.

In the southern part of the field, around 12 small basaltic scoria cones, and a rhyolite dome erupted in the last 500,000 years around Kaikohe.

In the north this belt extends towards the Three Kings Ridge.

It is arc related to the continent-backarc transform Vening Meimesz fault zone to the east of the present Northland land mass which is the eastern boundary of the Northland Allochthon in Zealandia.