The fossilised remains of an 180 million year-old 'Sea Dragon' found at Rutland Water Nature Reserve to be featured on the BBC.

The Dragon, Britain's biggest ichthyosaur, was found at the nature reserve in February 2021 by Joe Davis, who was supporting the routine draining of the lagoon with Reserves Officer Paul Trevor.

The skeleton of the ichthyosaur measures approximately 10 metres in length and has a skull that is estimated to weight around 1 tonne.

The creature has an incredible history. Thought to have been extinct 90 million years ago, it first appeared 160 million years before that, making it approximately 250 million years old in origin.

This Tuesday the 11th of January, you can find out more about the Sea Dragon on BBC Two's programme, Digging for Britain. Tune in at 8pm to learn more about this incredible discovery!

Alternatively, find out more about Rutland Water Nature Reserve by visiting their website and clicking 'About Us'.

Managed by Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, in partnership with Anglian Water, Rutland Water Nature Reserve has been supporting local wildlife and engaging the community with the world around them for over 65 years.

The Trust work to safeguard local wildlife by:

Protecting precious places

Encouraging people to enjoy nature

Inspiring and educating people

Researching and surveying wildlife

Speaking out for wildlife To find out more about how you can support the trust and help them achieve their aims, visit the Wildlife Trust website. While the discovery of the affectionately named 'Sea Dragon' may be their most impressive accolade to date, the team at Rutland Water work incredibly hard to protect our wildlife on a day-to-day basis, so do pop down and support them if you are able – keeping Coronavirus guidelines in mind. We hope you enjoy finding out more on Digging for Britain tomorrow evening. Happy watching!