Farmland grassland birds like lapwing, curlew, and yellow wagtail have declined catastrophically due to agricultural intensification.
Individual farmland birds killed or losing chicks to silage machinery experience acute suffering. At population level, the mass decline of once-common species represents an enormous welfare loss: billions of birds over decades. Welfare and conservation align here perfectly — restoring mixed farming practices, later mowing dates, and field margins benefits individual birds and population recovery. Supporting conservation farming through purchasing choices and policy advocacy directly reduces this suffering.