The European Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur is the UK’s fastest declining breeding bird species. The UK population has declined by 98% since 1970 and this decline is mirrored across Europe; this decline is through to be driven by a reduction in the number of breeding attempts per year combined with a dietary shift from arable weed seeds to anthropogenic food sources. Here, I will first describe habitat management trials designed to provide a source of seeding arable plants throughout the turtle dove breeding season. Second, I describe research determining the spatial scale for providing this foraging habitat in farmland alongside suitable nesting habitat. Third, I discuss the evidence for dietary change within this species and the implications of this dietary change for nestling survival and parasite transmission. Finally, I will discuss the on-going challenges for conservation of this species.