Rutland Water
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Rutland Water is a
reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...
in
Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...
, England, east of Rutland's county town,
Oakham Oakham is a market town and civil parish in Rutland (of which it is the county town) in the East Midlands of England. The town is located east of Leicester, southeast of Nottingham and northwest of Peterborough. It had a population of 12,14 ...
. It is filled by pumping from the
River Nene The River Nene ( or ) flows through the counties of Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk in Eastern England from its sources in Arbury Hill in Northamptonshire. Flowing Northeast through East England to its mouth at Lutt ...
and River Welland, and provides water to the
East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire (except for North Lincolnshire and North East ...
. By surface area it is the largest reservoir in England, but its capacity is exceeded by that of
Kielder Water Kielder Water is a large man-made reservoir in Northumberland in North East England. It is the largest artificial lake in the United Kingdom by capacity of water and it is surrounded by Kielder Forest, one of the biggest man-made woodlands in ...
in
Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...
. Its maximum depth is 33 m (108 ft). Set in of countryside, it has a track ( excluding Hambleton Peninsula) for walking or cycling. Since the water is drawn upon when needed, the relative areas of land and water vary a little, but the flatter parts of the lake margin are enclosed by banks so that the
wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...
is maintained (). A 6 sq. mi. (1,555 hectare) area of lake and shore is a biological
Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...
, and a
Nature Conservation Review ''A Nature Conservation Review'' is a two-volume work by Derek Ratcliffe, published by Cambridge University Press in 1977. It set out to identify the most important places for nature conservation in Great Britain. It is often known by the initi ...
site. An area of 5¼ sq. mi, (1,333 hectares) is an internationally important wetland site under the Ramsar Convention, and 1½ sq. mi. (393 hectares) at the western end is managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.


Construction

The reservoir's construction, by
dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...
ming the Gwash valley near Empingham, was completed in 1975. During its construction it was known as Empingham Reservoir. It flooded around 2½ sq. mi. (six or seven square kilometres) of the Gwash valley as well as the side valley, at the head of which lies
Oakham Oakham is a market town and civil parish in Rutland (of which it is the county town) in the East Midlands of England. The town is located east of Leicester, southeast of Nottingham and northwest of Peterborough. It had a population of 12,14 ...
. Nether Hambleton and most of Middle Hambleton were demolished and their
well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...
s were plugged as part of the ground preparation. Their neighbouring village of Upper Hambleton survived, and now sits on the Hambleton Peninsula. The Gwash makes a net input to the lake but its flow downstream is maintained. Most of the stored water is extracted from the River Welland at , between Tinwell and Stamford, and from the
River Nene The River Nene ( or ) flows through the counties of Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk in Eastern England from its sources in Arbury Hill in Northamptonshire. Flowing Northeast through East England to its mouth at Lutt ...
upstream from
Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...
, a city which is a major user of the water. Because much of the valley is clay, material for the dam was extracted from pits dug within the area that would be subsequently flooded. The clay dam is high, and around long. At its base, it is up to wide, and the finished structure has been landscaped to blend in with the environment, even when viewed from Empingham, the nearest village. Rutland Water contains a limnological tower for study of the reservoir's ecological conditions.


Community

Upper Hambleton and the remnant of Middle Hambleton, including the Old Hall, are together now known simply as Hambleton and are to be found on a long
peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...
in the middle of the lake, land that was formerly a ridge between the two valleys in which the lake now lies. The few houses of Normanton avoided flooding although its church did not. The lower part of the building was supported against water damage so that its upper part could be used to present the story of the construction of the reservoir to the public. Some funerary monuments from it can be seen at Edenham church, Lincolnshire.


Recreation

The reservoir is used not just for water storage, but is a popular sports centre – as well as
water sport Water sports or aquatic sports are sport, sports activities conducted on waterbodies and can be categorized according to the degree of immersion by the participants. On the water * Boat racing, the use of powerboats to participate in races * ...
s such as
sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...
, visitors enjoy
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...
,
walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an " inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults o ...
and
cycling Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...
along a perimeter track. A pleasure cruiser, the ''Rutland Belle'', carries people around the lake.
Birdwatching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescop ...
brings visitors from far afield.


Wildlife

Large areas of wetland (as well as several small woods) at the western end of the lake form a
nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...
, managed by Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust. The area is designated a
Special Protection Area A special protection area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cer ...
of international importance for its wintering populations of
gadwall The gadwall (''Mareca strepera'') is a common and widespread dabbling duck in the family Anatidae. Taxonomy The gadwall was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. DNA studies have shown th ...
(some 4% of this species’ European population) and shoveler. It is home to the
Anglian Water Anglian Water Services Limited is a water company that operates in the East of England. It was formed in 1989 under the partial privatisation of the water industry. It provides water supply, sewerage and sewage treatment to the area formerly ...
Bird Watching Centre. Every August, the centre was the venue for the British Birdwatching Fair until 2019. Other birds found here include lapwing,
coot Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usual ...
,
goldeneye ''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the List of James Bond films, ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional Secret Intelligence Service, MI6 agent James Bond (lit ...
,
tufted duck The tufted duck (or tufted pochard) (''Aythya fuligula'') is a small diving duck with a population of nearly one million birds, found in northern Eurasia. They are partially migratory. The scientific name is derived from Ancient Greek , an unide ...
, pochard,
teal alt=American teal duck (male), Green-winged teal (male) Teal is a greenish-blue color. Its name comes from that of a bird—the Eurasian teal (''Anas crecca'')—which presents a similarly colored stripe on its head. The word is often used ...
, wigeon,
cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) ado ...
,
great crested grebe The great crested grebe (''Podiceps cristatus'') is a member of the grebe family of water birds. The bird is characterised by its distinctive appearance, featuring striking black, orange-brown, and white plumage, and elaborate courtship displa ...
,
little grebe The little grebe (''Tachybaptus ruficollis''), also known as dabchick, is a member of the grebe family of water birds. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''takhus'' "fast" and ''bapto'' "to sink under". The specific ''ruficollis'' is from Latin ...
and, most notably,
osprey The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...
, which were re-introduced to the area during 1996, including one called " Mr Rutland". In 2021 there were 26 ospreys in the area of Rutland Water. The lake is stocked with brown trout and rainbow trout, but there is a large head of coarse fish populated by water pumped in from the River Welland and River Nene, species include roach,
bream Bream (, ) are species of freshwater fish belonging to a variety of genera including '' Abramis'' (e.g., ''A. brama'', the common bream), '' Ballerus'', '' Blicca'', '' Brama'', '' Chilotilapia'', '' Etelis'', '' Lepomis'', '' Gymnocranius'', ...
, pike,
zander The zander (''Sander lucioperca''), sander or pikeperch, is a species of ray-finned fish from the Family (biology), family Percidae, which also includes perch, Gymnocephalus, ruffe and Darter (fish), darter. It is found in freshwater and brackis ...
,
perch Perch is a common name for freshwater fish from the genus ''Perca'', which belongs to the family Percidae of the large order Perciformes. The name comes from , meaning the type species of this genus, the European perch (''P. fluviatilis'') ...
, eel, wels catfish and
carp The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...
.


Ichthyosaur

In early 2021 an
ichthyosaur Ichthyosauria is an order of large extinct marine reptiles sometimes referred to as "ichthyosaurs", although the term is also used for wider clades in which the order resides. Ichthyosaurians thrived during much of the Mesozoic era; based on fo ...
fossil was discovered during the routine draining of a lagoon at the reservoir by nature reserve manager Joe Davis. A '' Temnodontosaurus'' with a skeleton measuring about 30 feet (10 metres) in length and a skull weighing about a tonne, is the largest and most complete fossil of its kind found in the UK.


Visitor centres

The Anglian Water Birdwatching Centre, located in Egleton, features a gift shop operated by Anglian Water and a shop selling binoculars and telescopes. The centre includes the Rutland Environmental Education Centre, exhibits, and windows overlooking the wetlands. Rutland Water Visitor Centre, located at Sykes Lane, is a charming visitor information centre where there are a range of visitor leaflets & maps, knowledgeable staff, Rutland themed souvenirs & mini golf. The
Lyndon Lyndon may refer to: Places * Lyndon, Alberta, Canada * Lyndon, Rutland, East Midlands, England * Lyndon, Solihull, West Midlands, England United States * Lyndon, Illinois * Lyndon, Kansas * Lyndon, Kentucky * Lyndon, New York * Lyndon, Ohio * L ...
Visitor Centre is located on the reserve's south shore. There are exhibits, bird viewing windows, trails and hides.


References


External links


Rutland Water Nature ReserveOfficial Tourism Guide to Rutland WaterSpecial Protection Area dataRutland Sailing ClubImages of Rutland Water
{{Authority control Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust Nature Conservation Review sites Ramsar sites in England Reservoirs in Rutland Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Rutland Special Protection Areas in England Drinking water reservoirs in England Nature centres in England