Bittell Reservoirs

Also within

Worcestershire County

Condition (Natural England)

Birds & fish recorded

Birds

Description

Area, 66.9 ha. 165.3 ac. Description Bittell Reservoirs lie in the Upper Arrow Valley of north Worcestershire. They were formed by the damming of a large shallow basin in the Keuper Marl. These reservoirs together form the largest area of open water in the county and represent one of the most important sites in the West Midlands for passage and wintering waders as well as other waterfowl, with over 200 species recorded. A variety of birds breed on the site including great crested grebe Podiceps cristatus, little ringed plover Charadrius dubius and grasshopper warbler Locustella naevia. The reservoirs are surrounded by a diversity of marginal communities. These include a rare silt shoreline community in the draw down zone of Upper Bittell where the nationally rare plants slender spike rush Eleocharis acicularis and mudwort Limosella aquatica are abundant. The open water community is also very diverse with small pondweed Potamogeton berchtoldii, blunt leaved pondweed Potamogeton obtusifolius and horned pondweed Zannichellia palustris, all of which are scarce species in Worcestershire. The invertebrate fauna of the site is likewise rich and includes 5 species of dragonfly. The rare mud snail Omphiscola glabra also occurs.

Species mentioned