Researcher Sirpa Lehtinen from the Finnish Environment Institute (Syke) said that cyanobacteria exist in seawater all year round, but intense heat causes them to multiply quickly.

According to the Natural Resources Institute (Luke), the wolf population is expanding into the south and west – but winter will once more contain their numbers.

Sightings of great egrets have been reported for decades, but sightings this summer confirm the first time the species has nested in Finland.

The H5N8 virus was detected in sick and injured birds in February and early March this year, including in a swan found dead in Helsinki's Eläintarhanlahti park and a goshawk sent to Korkeasaari Wildlife Hospital from Kumpula. Several birds infected with avian influenza have been found in Uusimaa this winter.

High winds blasted across south-western Finland Friday, cutting electricity to customers. The rare June storm peaked on Friday afternoon.

The blaze destroyed large swathes of forest this week.

Spring - or rather thermal spring - could be arriving to Finland as early as this week in southern and western areas.

According to Simo Laine, head horticulturalist at botanical garden in Turku, southwest Finland, it could well be the first time that the blooms have made an appearance in the country as early as January.

Reports of symptoms such as diarrhoea and vomiting are being investigated in South Ostrobothnia.

Powder on the ground is nearly one meter deep in some parts of Finland's northernmost region.

The Pallas's reed bunting has been sighted fewer than 10 times in Europe.

Helsinki usually gets 70-80 millimetres of rain during August. Friday morning alone brought 56 mm of water to Kaisaniemi Park, where the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) has a weather station.

Record wind speeds have been clocked in southern maritime districts as a storm dubbed Aapeli causes widespread power cuts and train delays across Finland.

In the frigid waters of the Gulf of Finland, cyanobacteria has been observed for the first time during the winter months.

For example, Espoo's district of Nuuksio recorded 24.8 degrees celsius (77 F) on Tuesday. Many people across the country took advantage of the warm temperatures and headed outdoors with some opting to go swimming in lakes or pools.

An extended period of hot, dry weather is affecting the harvest outlook and impacting grain growth. Even the wild berry season, which was off to a good start, may be in peril.

The mercury hit 16.6 degrees C at Mariehamn airport on Friday, beating Tuesday’s record-breaking high of 14.7 C in Pori.

Finland is emerging from a deep freeze, giving way to milder temperatures and more snow. On Saturday three people in Helsinki fell through the ice at two different locations within the same 15-minute period.

Rain and rising temperatures have brought warnings of extremely slippery conditions in other areas.

An exceptionally warm air current from the southeast has kept days and nights unseasonably mild in southern and central Finland since last week. Meanwhile the north of the country has been shivering with rain and temperatures in the single digits. The highest reading in decades was recorded in Kokemäki, southwest Finland.