The dry spell has seen levels drop

Scottish Water said the country is having one of the longest dry spells for 75 years.

The industry body is concerned about levels of water in 15 reservoirs and supplies in other areas are "adequate but not plentiful".

At Glendevon in Perth and Kinross an old farm has reappeared near the bottom of a reservoir after being submerged for the past 50 years.

In these circumstances, we'd ask our customers to use their water wisely Dr John Hargreaves Scottish Water chief executive

The authority said that rainfall in September was just above half of the expected monthly average and in October it was 48% of the expected norm.

The west of Scotland has been particularly affected with a third of the average rainfall last month.

The authority said it is seeking drought orders for Lochinvar Reservoir in Dumfries and Galloway and Glendevon.

This will allow it to supply Lochinvar with water from another source and release less water from Glendevon into the River Devon.

Scottish Water said it will also be:

• targeting leaks in areas where there is concern about supplies

• "moving water around" the network to worst affected areas

• appealing to customers to use water sensibly.

Dr Jon Hargreaves, chief executive of Scottish Water, said: "What we are doing today is making our customers aware that we have concerns and we are taking precautionary measures to ensure that supplies are maintained if this rare, prolonged dry spell continues.

"In these circumstances, we'd ask our customers to use their water wisely.

"We would like to reassure customers that no-one is in any imminent danger of running out of water.