Montagu harriers nest in cereal crops across southern and central Europe, with welfare critically dependent on harvest timing and conservation partnerships with farmers.
Montagu harrier welfare at cereal crop nest sites depends directly on agricultural management decisions. Nests sited in cereal fields are invisible and would be destroyed by combine harvesters without active protection. Nest protection schemes — where surveyors locate nests and work with farmers to exclude harvest machinery from a small radius around each nest — dramatically improve chick survival rates. This represents one of the most direct and welfare-positive conservation interventions, where a single management decision prevents the complete loss of an entire breeding attempt. Extension of nest protection schemes across the European range is the primary welfare and conservation need.