Whinchat
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Habitat and behaviour
Habitat: Rough grassland (summer).
Diet: Insects.
Best time to spot: Pale eye-stripe; passage commoner.
When to look
A summer visitor, typically in the UK from April to September. Numbers peak in May. See the May birding guide for what else is about. More on the season in Bird migration in Britain.
How rare is it?
The Whinchat sits in our Uncommon tier for the UK: regular, but you usually need the right place or the right season. It is Red-listed in Birds of Conservation Concern 5, the highest level of concern in the UK.
Recent UK sightings
No community sightings logged for this species yet. Log the first one.
Similar birds
- Caspian StonechatEpic · Coastal scrub (very rare)
- European StonechatCommon · Heathland
- Siberian StonechatRare · Coastal scrub (vagrant)
- Stejneger's StonechatEpic · Coastal scrub (very rare)
- Common Grasshopper WarblerRare · Rough grassland
- Barn OwlUncommon · Rough grassland
Kit that helps
Bird ID starter kit. Affiliate links, our own picks, no extra cost to you.
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