The common linnet is a farmland finch whose UK population has declined dramatically since the 1970s due to agricultural intensification that has removed the weed seed resources on which the species depends.
Linnet welfare is directly determined by the availability of weed seeds across the farmed landscape. The removal of weedy stubbles through autumn cultivation has eliminated winter food supplies. Herbicide use suppresses the weed seed banks on which breeding birds depend to feed chicks. Conversion of diverse grassland to monoculture silage eliminates the invertebrates needed during chick rearing. Recovery requires landscape-scale change in farming practice.