A book about the birds of Malta was listed among the 10 best ornithological books published last year.

Natalino Fenech’s A Complete Guide to the Birds of Malta, published by Midsea Books, was voted as the sixth best book about birds by a jury for one of Britain’s leading ornithological journals British Birds, published by the British Trust for Ornithology.

The book was also highly commended by the popular British birding magazine Birdwatch. The magazine said: “A Complete Guide to the Birds of Malta is an outstanding example in its genre. It stands out most from the crowd by combining detailed species’ accounts with a comprehensive historical and cultural overview of birds on the island, and the often controversial role in their fate played by man”.

Dr Fenech’s book won in the ‘best research’ section in last year’s Malta National Book Prize where the judges had said the book will remain a point of reference for years to come.

Dr Fenech, head of news at PBS and a former journalist at The Times, believes the book’s appeal lies in combining bird study with popular bird lore.

“There is information on everything you want to know about birds and about the role birds play in our lives, irrespective of whether we notice it or not.”

The author said writing the book was a labour of love. “I find it really positive that I get comments about it both from people interested in birds, including hunters, as well as those who thought they would never buy a book about birds.”

Jonathan Elphick, one of the UK’s most followed natural history authors, wrote that the book is generous in detail and insight. “This remarkable book, with its meticulously researched text and almost 900 illustrations, should not only remain the definitive work on its subject for many years, but also do much to further the cause of bird conservation in Malta.”