This year’s dry summer has caused water levels at Fernworthy Reservoir near Chagford to fall so low that normally submerged prehistoric archaeology has been revealed.

The exposed remains include a Bronze Age hut circle, a clapper bridge and a packhorse bridge, according to Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA).

Figures published by South West Lakes Trust for the week ending October 11 show the reservoir was 24 per cent full, storing 416 megalitres (Ml) of its 1,765 Ml net capacity. This compares with 47 per cent recorded in October 2022, which also followed a dry summer.

The reservoir was completed in 1942 to supply Torbay with water, flooding part of a Bronze Age settlement at Metherell. The settlement was first excavated in the 1930s prior to the reservoir’s construction.

The remains periodically reappear during dry summers and were surveyed in 2013 after falling water exposed most of the submerged features.

DNPA said the features face similar vulnerabilities to other exposed moorland remains. National Park archaeologists carry out inspections during low-water periods to help ensure they are protected.

South West Lakes Trust advises visitors to stay on paths and keep dogs on leads because of deep mud around the exposed areas.

The Environment Agency declared Devon officially in drought in July and was still classed as in drought in a Government report released this month.