Birds, bees and butterflies benefited from this year's balmy spring, the National Trust's annual review has found, with species returning to areas where they had not been seen for decades.

The charity said that the mild start to the year led to a good nesting season for birds and helped insects to thrive.

Record numbers of bumblebees were recorded on parts of the Lytes Cary Manor estate in Somerset, and the Heather Colletes bee thrived on the Purbeck heaths in Dorset, the Trust said.

Atlantic bluefin tuna, anchovies and squid all returned to UK seas due to warmer waters.

The hawfinch, which is rare and difficult to spot, also benefited from warm weather, as did the little tern and the Purple Emperor butterfly.

Earlier this month feral goats and feral Soay sheep at Cheddar Gorge, Somerset were also reported to be in good condition due to good grass growth.

The benefits of good spring weather weren't limited to animals - it also meant a "bumper" autumn harvest of seeds, fruits and nuts.

A combination of a warm early spring and summer and a wet late summer and autumn also meant a good year for fungi, with rare waxcaps discovered on the Malham estate in Yorkshire and the powdercap stranger found at Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire.