Tim writes: Whinchat is now largely an upland bird in Britain having suffered a 47% range contraction since 1968-72. A range contraction means that a 10km square that had breeding Whinchats (could have been one or dozens of pairs) in the 68-72 Atlas, did not hold breeding Whinchats in the 2007-11 Atlas. Monitoring of numbers also revealed a 57% drop in numbers during the 15 year period 1995-2010. I have noticed a decline, even in the Pennine hills where I live, so it is always a treat to see one. This is a brightly coloured male with a peach wash across his chest. The bracken he is perched on is typical of the nesting habitat in the Pennines.
Taken with Nikon D500 with Nikkor 300mm f4 lens plus 1.4x converter at f5.6 1/2500 second ISO 1250
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