Stocks reservoir is situated close to the village of Slaidburn. It is reached by following the B6478 towards Long Preston.

Stocks was opened in 1932 and at its deepest point is 100 feet or 32 metres and holds 3,059 million gallons of water and which was built to serve Blackpool and Flyde.

Stocks is said to be one of the best bird watching areas in England and is jointly looked after by United Utilities and the RSPB. The old village of Dalehead now lies beneath the water but the reservoir is now alove with birds.

In summer there is a breeding colony of gulls including the rare Mediterranean gull situated on an island in the middle of reservoir. This island was once a hill overlooking a village.

Circular footpaths have been set out around the area and there is a comfortable hide overlooking the water. Inside the hide is a notebook in which visitors are asked to record their sightings. When I visited last year the weather was wet and windy and there was water, water everywhere. This year it was hot and dry with the water levels low.

There were breeding birds everywhere including tufted ducks which are increasing their resident population year by year. A few years ago they were rare in the summer and were mainly seen in the winter. Now many more are breeding in Britain and very welcome they are.

Here is another example that our wildlife is continually changing which has always been the case. This is why our countryside is always interesting.

With a few hot days behind us we tend to forget the cold winter and early spring.

Many thought that our wildlife would never recover. They were wrong. We should never forget just how resilient our wildlife is.

For example the freezing weather meant that snowdrops and daffodils came into bloom late whilst as the weather improved wild garlic and bluebells came into bloom on time.

The results was that the spring of 2010 produced a fascinating and unexpected mix of flowers.

The we had the national media point out that our frog population would be decimated. On the day this worry was published I opened my back door on a frosty morning to be greeted by a very healthy looking frog. I now know that frogs can’t read and neither do they consult with scientists.

Many years ago I met with an old farmer and he told me “wild animals don’t know about weather forecasts. They just get on with it.”

This just shows how important it is for naturalists to keep a diary. 2009 was once of the wettest summers on record but here we are in June and July in 2010 being threatened with a drought!

Talk about swings and roundabouts!