BirdWatch Ireland has welcomed the government’s decision to scrap the shallow cultivation of winter stubble in the Nitrates Action Programme but said the change comes too late to help farmland birds this winter.

The rule was introduced in 2022 to reduce nitrate leaching from farmland but had been widely criticised for its impact on at least 30 Red and Amber Listed bird species.

Winter stubbles provide spilled seeds that feed small birds such as Yellowhammer and Skylark and support predators such as Hen Harrier.

Research on 30 farms in south Cork found that winter stubbles were the most important field type for farmland birds over winter, accounting for 48 per cent of observed birds.

BirdWatch said the ecological impacts of the rule should have been assessed before it was implemented.

Oonagh Duggan, Head of Policy and Advocacy at BirdWatch Ireland, said Ireland is in the midst of a biodiversity crisis and farmland birds represent the fastest declining group of birds in the country.

She called on the government to incentivise farmers to maintain stubbles and other habitats in the next CAP Strategic Plan and National Restoration Plan.