Fontburn is a drinking water

Drinking water

Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...

 reservoir situated 10 miles (16 km) northwest of the market town of Morpeth

Morpeth, Northumberland

Morpeth is the county town of Northumberland, England. It is situated on the River Wansbeck which flows east through the town. The town is from the A1, which bypasses it. Since 1981, it has been the administrative centre of the County of Northumberland. In the 2001 census the town had a population...

 in Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

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History

The reservoir was built at the end of the 19th century to provide drinking water

Drinking water

Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...

 for parts of southeast Northumberland.

Flora and fauna

The north shore is mainly vegetated with scrub and woodland, including willow

Willow

Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...

, blackthorn

Prunus spinosa

Prunus spinosa is a species of Prunus native to Europe, western Asia, and locally in northwest Africa. It is also locally naturalised in New Zealand and eastern North America....

, elder, birch

Birch

Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...

, hawthorn

Common Hawthorn

Crataegus monogyna, known as common hawthorn or single-seeded hawthorn, is a species of hawthorn native to Europe, northwest Africa and western Asia. It has been introduced in many other parts of the world where it is an invasive weed...

, and hazel

Hazel

The hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.They have simple, rounded leaves with double-serrate margins...

. Common spotted orchid

Common spotted orchid

The Common Spotted-orchid is acommonly occurring species of European orchid. It is widely variable in colour and height, ranging from 15 to 60 cm in height. The flower colour can vary from white to pale purple with purple spots. The lip has three lobes...

s grow in the base-rich flushed areas. At the extreme south eastern corner of the site there is an area of marshy grassland with abundant meadow-sweet, wild angelica

Wild Angelica

Wild Angelica is a species of plant that grows about one metre tall. It has broad, double-finned leaves. The stem is coarse, tubular and violet at the bottom, with broad leaf shafts.At the top the stem has fine hairs....

, common knapweed

Centaurea nigra

Centaurea nigra is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common names Lesser Knapweed, Common Knapweed and Black Knapweed...

, and sneezewort and where there is periodic flooding of the shore you can also find species like common spike rush

Eleocharis palustris

Eleocharis palustris Roem. & Schult. is a species of mat-forming perennial plants in the genus Eleocharis growing in wetlands throughout the Boreal Kingdom. E...

, reed canary grass

Reed canary grass

Reed canarygrass, Phalaris arundinacea, is a tall, perennial bunchgrass that commonly forms extensive single-species stands along the margins of lakes and streams and in wet open areas, with a wide distribution in Europe, Asia, northern Africa and North America.-Description:The stems can reach 2.5...

, lesser spearwort

Ranunculus flammula

Ranunculus flammula L. is a species of perennial herbaceous plants in the genus Ranunculus , growing in damp places throughout the Boreal Kingdom. It is very closely related to R. reptans L., which is distinguished by prostrate and more slender stems, narrower leaves and smaller flowers and is...

, and amphibious bistort.

The presence of four British reptiles; common lizard

Viviparous lizard

The viviparous lizard or common lizard is a Eurasian lizard. It lives farther north than any other reptile species, and most populations are viviparous , rather than laying eggs as most other lizards do.-Identification:The length of the body is less than...

, adder

Vipera berus

Vipera berus, the common European adder or common European viper, is a venomous viper species that is extremely widespread and can be found throughout most of Western Europe and all the way to Far East Asia. Known by a host of common names including Common adder and Common viper, adders have been...

, slow worm

Anguis fragilis

Anguis fragilis, or slow worm, slow-worm or slowworm, is a limbless reptile native to Eurasia. It is also sometimes referred to as the blindworm or blind worm, though the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds considers this to be incorrect.Slow worms are semi-fossorial lizards spending much...

, and grass snake

Grass Snake

The grass snake , sometimes called the ringed snake or water snake is a European non-venomous snake. It is often found near water and feeds almost exclusively on amphibians.-Etymology:...

, and five of Britain’s native amphibians; common frog

Common Frog

The Common Frog, Rana temporaria also known as the European Common Frog or European Common Brown Frog is found throughout much of Europe as far north as well north of the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia and as far east as the Urals, except for most of Iberia, southern Italy, and the southern Balkans...

, common toad

Common Toad

The common toad or European toad is an amphibian widespread throughout Europe, with the exception of Iceland, Ireland and some Mediterranean islands...

, smooth newt

Smooth Newt

The Smooth Newt, also known as the Common Newt, Lissotriton vulgaris is the most common newt species of the Lissotriton genus of amphibians. L...

, palmate newt

Palmate Newt

The Palmate Newt is a species of newt found in most of Western Europe, including Great Britain. It is protected by law in all countries where it occurs, and is thought to be extremely rare to endangered in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg and vulnerable in Spain and Poland but common...

, and great crested newt

Great Crested Newt

The Great Crested Newt, also called Northern Crested Newt or Warty Newt is a newt in the family Salamandridae, found across Europe and parts of Asia.-Distribution:...

 mean that this an extremely valuable and important wildlife site. The grass snake records for Fontburn make this one of the most northerly authenticated colonies of this species in Britain.

Fishing

The reservoir is regularly stocked with trout and is a favoured place with fresh water anglers

Fisherman

A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishermen and fish farmers. The term can also be applied to recreational fishermen and may be used to describe both men...

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Ancient monuments

Close to the reservoir there are ancient Bronze Age

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...

sites which are easily reached on foot. The area is also popular with hill walkers.