Hope rises for Dartmoor's Whinchats

In a promising development for one of the UK's declining bird species, local farmers, RSPB scientists, and the Our Upland Commons Project are joining forces to restore grassland habitats for Whinchats on Dartmoor. 

This collaborative effort aims to protect the Whinchats, smaller than a robin yet boasting striking plumage with a white eye stripe and an orange throat, in one of their last remaining strongholds in the South West.

The Whinchat, a red-listed species, has experienced a staggering 60 per cent decline in the UK between 1995 and 2022, now largely confined to the marginal uplands of Scotland, northern England, central Wales, the Isle of Man, Exmoor, and Dartmoor. 

Action is critical to halt this decline and maintain breeding populations in the region.

A recent report from the RSPB, published in August 2024, outlines key conservation strategies to bolster Whinchat numbers. Authors Dr Robert Hawkes and Helen Booker examined data from a comprehensive Dartmoor-wide breeding bird survey conducted in 1979. 

Their findings indicate that steep-sided valleys with scattered trees, away from intensive farmland, provide optimal habitats for Whinchats.

Common lands, when managed with appropriate grazing levels, play a crucial role in sustaining these birds.

Dr Hawkes, a conservation scientist at the RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, emphasised the importance of these habitats: “Common land can be perfect with the appropriate grazing levels They are also more likely to persist in areas with a mixed bracken, heather and bilberry field-layer. It is great that positive action is being taken now. But further work is urgently needed to understand if this can help the recovery of this iconic upland breeder.”

The conservation efforts are part of the £3 million project Our Common Cause: Our Upland Commons led by the Foundation for Common Land and supported by 25 partners, including funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and grants from the Esmée Fairbairn and Garfield Weston Foundations. 

Tamsin Thomas, Project Officer, noted: “Thanks to this careful research, commoners and landowners have some solid recommendations to follow. Many are already acting on the findings.” 

On Holne common land, for example, owner Kevin Cox and farming commoner John French have planted 100 trees to enhance a recently rewetted valley mire, protecting them with unobtrusive guards from grazing animals.

Additionally, commoners in Holne, Harford, and Ugborough are investigating the impact of pesticides used to protect livestock from tick-borne diseases on local dung beetle populations, crucial food sources for Whinchats, which feed on a range of invertebrates.

For those interested in the report, a summary is available on the Foundation for Common Land's website under the 'Our Upland Commons' tab in the Project Reports section. 

As efforts to safeguard Dartmoor's unique wildlife continue, the hope is that these collaborative actions will give the Whinchat a fighting chance against extinction, ensuring this iconic upland bird remains a part of Dartmoor's rich natural heritage.