Ardingly Reservoir

Saturday - Ardingly Reservoir, West Sussex - hot, dry and sunny - Having dropped Pat off at the South of England Showground to attend a craft fair, I made my way to a nearby reservoir and nature reserve for the day. Ardingly Reservoir was new to me and is a 98 hectare drinking water reservoir managed by South East Water. It is well used for water sports and fishing and on a sunny day in early July it was pretty busy with people. As depicted below the water levels were dropping fast and at the quieter western end a few Lapwings had dropped in; I`m sure that one or two more waders could occur as the autumn passage picks up. Other water birds included the usual array of feral geese, Coots, Moorhens, Cormorants, gulls, 12 Great Crested Grebes and five Grey Herons. Several small reed beds held Reed Warblers and Buntings, while up to 50 House Martins dipped in and out over the water.

                                 Ardingly Reservoir

                                 Reed Bunting and Grey Heron

The surrounding woodland was very quiet bird wise, mainly due to the time of year and day, but did eventually include all the usual suspects, plus several Marsh Tits, a species I rarely see now. A Tawny Owl was unusually vocal with juvs nearby and Buzzards were common place. A few common butterflies and dragonflies were on the wing as the sun broke through and the heat built during the afternoon, so all things considered a pretty decent outing.