A five-yearly puffin census is being changed to an annual count amid fears climate change is affecting numbers, the National Trust said.

The charity, which has carried out the survey on the Farne Islands for 50 years, says it will now monitor the charismatic seabirds more closely amid global declines in numbers which led to it being listed as vulnerable to extinction.

There are concerns about the reduction in the quality and abundance of its preferred food source, the sandeel, and more frequent storms, as a result of climate change.

The Trust, which looks after the islands off the coast of Northumberland, said Atlantic puffins have traditionally done well there due work by rangers, a lack of predators, suitable nesting areas, and increasing protection of the surrounding marine areas.

Results from the 2018 survey revealed stable puffin numbers, with an increase of around 9% since 2013 to 43,956 pairs of birds.

But more widely, puffins are in decline, with large drops in more northerly populations due to a shortage of sandeels, and annual monitoring on the Farnes will help reveal any downward population among the birds.