In the Netherlands, the conventional method to protect meadowbirds was to restrict farming and provide compensation in critical nesting areas. New small-scale experiments indicate paying farmers for the actual number of meadowbird clutches the farm produced indicate potential benefits over the older methods. The breeding success for meadowbirds was higher, and the costs were only 40 Euro per clutch when compared to the traditional method of paying 100-400 Euro per clutch based upon income loss (Musters et al., 2001). While meadowbird protection has been occurring for over 25 years, the results of the conservation efforts are mixed.