The first batch of an endangered Maltese national fish was released into protected site il-Magħluq in Marsascala this morning.

Natura Trust had been breeding the sub-species called Killifish (bużaqq) for four years in the hope of preserving it from extinction.

Environment Minister Jose Herrera, who helped lower the bucket of small fish into the brackish waters of the Natura 2000 site, said it was important to preserve biodiversity on the island.

"Along with pollution the loss of biodiversity is one of the biggest challenges we face. Despite Malta being small we have a diverse number of species like this one that we need to preserve," he said.

While a lot of environmental degradation had been caused by human beings, Dr Herrera explained, technology and better awareness meant that we could work towards reversing this damage.

A Mediterranean Killifish. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

He also spoke about plans to start a genetic bank of biodiversity in Malta in the near future to aid in preserving local species of birds, reptiles and other fauna.

Killifish are endemic to the saline marshwaters of Marsaxlokk and Marsascala, according to CEO of Natura Trust Vincent Attard. They feed on small invertebrates and aquatic plants.

In the 1990s the subspecies became extinct in Marsascala and some fish were brought over from Marsaxlokk to repopulate the area, Mr Attard explained.

A few years later however, the fish went extinct in Marsaxlokk too due to heavy pollution coming in with the rain water.

"This led us to become very worried," Mr Attard said. 

"Over here in il-Maghluq we had a lot of problems with purification, alien species, the ducks and pollution. We thought we're going to lose this sub species for good."

Breeding the fish before it became extinct was the only solution, Mr Attard insisted.

On Friday morning, the four-year-old fish were released into a controlled environment, a type of cage immersed in the water, for the purposes of studying their behaviour.

"This will help us understand the fish better so when we release them into Marsaxlokk where they are totally extinct we will have more data regarding the environment the fish need to thrive."

At the same time if the fish breed, the fry are able to escape through the cage.

The project, known as the 'killifish conservation project', involved the collaboration of various entities including the local council of Marsaxlokk, Nature Trust, Malta Aquatic Research Centre, the Enviornmental Resources Authority (ERA) and Bank of Valletta.

According to a spokesperson of the ERA, this was a pilot project which they hoped to replicate with other species in the future.