The historic letter submitted on 20th May 2023 (World Bee Day) by the Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee, requesting the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) to declare the Maltese Honey Bee the National Insect of Malta, has now been translated into English and is available below. The request was widely accepted and underwent a public consultation process. The Maltese Honey Bee was officially declared the National Insect of Malta on 24th September 2024 — a proud moment for our Foundation that will long be famous in the apicultural history of Malta.
20th May 2023 – World Bee Day
Request for the Maltese Honey Bee to be Declared the National Insect
To the Environment and Resources Authority,
The ‘Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee’, which is registered with the Office of the Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations (VO/2403), is formally submitting this request in accordance with subsidiary legislation 549.120 on the Regulations for the Protection of Protected Species (Declaration of National Species), for the Maltese Honey Bee, or as it is scientifically known Apis mellifera ruttneri, to be declared the National Insect.
The Maltese Honey Bee
Among the regions where the honey bee species (Apis mellifera) is native, we find the Mediterranean. On the Maltese Islands, the Maltese Honey Bee subspecies (Apis mellifera ruttneri) resides, and it is found exclusively in the Maltese archipelago, making it endemic to these islands. It is clear that the characteristics of the Maltese Honey Bee are being polluted by the importation of foreign honey bee subspecies into our country. As honey bees naturally interbreed with minimal distinction between different subspecies, this is resulting in the hybridisation of the genetics of the Maltese Honey Bee, which had remained isolated for decades. Consequently, due to this mixing, the Maltese Honey Bee is being driven towards extinction, as it loses the distinctive ‘Maltese’ traits that once made it unique among honey bee populations. Furthermore, this results in the loss of its special adaptation to the local climate and environment. The evolutionary processes that led to the formation of this subspecies, including survival of the fittest, have been severely disrupted—to the detriment of this subspecies, which is part of Malta’s living natural heritage. This anthropogenic process of uncontrolled hybridisation has undoubtedly placed this endemic subspecies at serious risk of extinction.
It is also appropriate to make reference to the local beekeeping sector, which is intrinsically dependent on the Maltese Honey Bee. In the context of climate change, the protection of this local subspecies is of paramount importance. The potential for adaptation to harsher climatic conditions in the near future lies solely in the conservation of the endemic subspecies. The importance of conserving and breeding the local bee is beneficial and vital. The Maltese subspecies, by virtue of its endemic status, has intrinsic value that enriches local biodiversity. Conservation of this subspecies is also essential for a sustainable apiculture sector in the future.
About the Foundation
The main aim of the Foundation is to develop and implement an action plan for the conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee and to oversee its coordination and execution. The Foundation addresses issues relating to the Maltese Honey Bee with the following objectives, all based on the overarching aim:
a) To raise awareness of the importance of the Maltese Honey Bee for the natural environment of our country (ecology) and for the apiculture sector and, more broadly, agriculture.
b) To affirm that the Maltese Honey Bee is part of Malta’s natural heritage and therefore deserves holistic conservation.
c) To encourage awareness, breeding, and research into the endemic Maltese Honey Bee.
d) To bring together under one umbrella and coordinate various entities, individuals, and non-governmental organisations interested in the conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee.
e) To exert pressure for the creation of a plan to protect the Maltese Honey Bee in a holistic manner.
Legal Report on the Protection of the Maltese Honey Bee
The ‘Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee’, together with Mr David Chetcuti Dimech (lead author and law graduate) and Professor Simone Borg (academic supervisor and professor at the Faculty of Laws at the University of Malta), have completed a legal report entitled The Protection of the Endemic Maltese Honey Bee. This report was published in the European Energy and Environmental Law Review. The legal paper explores various ways in which the Maltese Honey Bee can be protected holistically through the application of current Maltese, European, and international legislation. The study proceeds from the premise that genetic mixing resulting from hybridisation is a form of pollution and therefore constitutes environmental harm. The precautionary principle is also discussed. The legal paper examines how local bees in other European countries or regions have been protected and what the European Court’s conclusions were when such laws were challenged. The report outlines several recommendations for protecting the Maltese Honey Bee. The most plausible recommendation is for the bee to be declared the National Insect. Through this declaration, the endemic subspecies would receive the highest level of protection.
The Request
According to the Regulations on the Protection of Protected Species (Declaration of National Species, S.L. 549.120), as stated in Article 4(a), the Environment and Resources Authority is the administrator of these regulations. Article 5 of the same law states that the competent authority may declare additional National Species provided that these species meet one or more of the following criteria:
(a) Wild species indigenous to Malta or representative of Malta’s flora and fauna;
(b) Wild species endemic to the Maltese Islands and their waters and seas;
(c) Species of particular importance due to scientific, ecological, biodiversity, biogeographical, landscape, or educational interest;
(d) Species with specific cultural or historical connections to Malta and its identity;
(e) Threatened, rare, or potentially extinct species, particularly those with a restricted range in Malta;
(f) Charismatic species that serve as symbols or focal points for raising environmental awareness and that can be regarded as flagship species;
(g) Species with potential to foster greater interest in environmental protection or that can positively influence attitudes towards conservation and environmental management;
(h) Species that, in the opinion of the competent authority, satisfy similarly relevant criteria.
The Maltese Honey Bee meets more than one of these criteria and therefore fully merits this designation. It is also worth recalling that the conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee was proposed (proposal number 596) in the electoral manifesto of the current governing party. We also believe that this declaration could make the Maltese Honey Bee the mascot of the ‘Pollinator Strategy’ currently being developed by the Environment and Resources Authority. The law itself refers to the use of “charismatic species that serve as symbols or focal points for raising environmental awareness and that can be regarded as flagship species.” This declaration would also align with the ‘National Biodiversity Strategy for 2030’, which the same Authority is drafting, as it would be a strong step toward the protection of fragile local biodiversity.
We hope that the Authority will accept our request, which is rooted in noble aims focused on the protection and conservation of the living natural heritage found on these islands, for the common good.
We thank you in advance.
Sincerely,
Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee (VO/2403)
Signed:
Dylan Farrugia, B.Sc. (Hons.) Biology (Melit.), M.Sc. Mol. & Cell Biology (Melit.)
Co-Founder and Administrator (President)
Abner Joe Buttigieg, B.Sc. (Hons.) Biomedical Science (Melit.), M.Sc. Medical Microbiology (Ulster)
Co-Founder and Administrator (Secretary)
Neil Cutajar, B.Sc. (Hons.) Biology & Chemistry (Melit.)
Administrator (Treasurer)
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