Wildlife

Wild Corn Bunting Welfare Farmland

Corn buntings are farmland birds that have declined catastrophically due to agricultural intensification and loss of mixed farming systems.

Key Facts

Corn bunting populations declined by 90 percent between 1970 and 2010 in the UK
They require cereal fields with rough field margins for nesting and autumn stubble for winter feeding
Multiple broods per season mean management from May to August is critical
Corn buntings are polygynous; males may have multiple females nesting simultaneously
Loss of winter stubble fields has eliminated key winter feeding habitat across their range

Welfare Considerations

Corn bunting chicks nesting in fields cut before they fledge face starvation and predation. Adults in winter without stubble fields face nutritional stress across the entire population.

What You Can Do

Support agri-environment schemes that maintain winter stubble for corn buntings
Advocate for mixed farming systems that support farmland bird diversity
Donate to RSPB and Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust farmland bird programs