World-renowned tenor Joseph Calleja has called for the Maltese honey bee to be provided the highest level of protection in a new educational video on the endemic species.

“The Maltese honey bee should have the highest protection so it can continue to spread and be enjoyed for the years to come,” Calleja said.

The island’s opera heavyweight is best known for his powerful voice but many are unaware that Calleja has a strong passion for beekeeping.

“There is so little nature in Malta that what we have we should protect in any way that we can.”

The video, ‘A Unique Insect: The Maltese Honey Bee’ is being launched on World Bee Day (today) by the Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee.

The foundation [is] urging ERA to name the Maltese Honey Bee as the official National Insect of Malta

The foundation runs the National Insect Initiative, urging the Environmental Resources Authority (ERA) to name the Maltese Honey Bee, Apis mellifera ruttneri, as the official National Insect of Malta.

The foundation also appeals for action to be taken to provide sustainable policies to protect the Maltese Bee equivalent to the protection of the local ecosystem.

While endemic to the Maltese islands, the Maltese honey bee is a subspecies of the Western honey bee and has evolved to cope with the specific conditions of its geographical isolation in Malta, and to adapt to the hot summers.

The foundation has been promoting its National Insect Initiative to raise awareness of the importance of the Maltese Honey Bee: Photo: Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee

Currently, there are five national species, including Malta’s national bird, the Blue rock thrush (il-merill), and Malta’s national plant, the Maltese rock-centaury (widnet il-baħar). Yet, there is no mention of a national insect.

For years, numerous local beekeepers have called for the protection of the Maltese Honey Bee, saying imported foreign bees pose a threat to the species as they bring new illnesses and pests.

The foundation also highlights how the species’ genetic purity is threatened due to cross-breeding with other foreign bee species, and calls for a ban on the importation of foreign bees to safeguard the endemic species.

This point was further emphasised after research suggested the Maltese bee is at risk of “imminent extinction” unless foreign species are banned.

The new educational video highlights the important role of the Maltese Honey Bee in Malta’s ecosystem and why it should be the National Insect of Malta. Photo: Niki Alexander Mallia

The video explores various aspects of the special bee, including its historic connection to the Maltese islands, its unique biodiversity, the challenges it faces, and its prospects.

The video featured other beekeepers, such as Arnold Grech, a veteran beekeeper who has been rearing honey bees since 1949 and was one of the Maltese investigators who, along with international researchers, classified the Maltese Honey Bee and gave it its scientific name.

Michaelangelo Muscat, a third-generation beekeeper, who has been harvesting Maltese honey for over 50 years, and Jorge Spiteri, the national representative of the Maltese Young Beekeepers for the International Centre for Young Beekeepers, also spoke of the importance of protecting the Maltese Honey Bee.

Others were David Chetcuti Dimech and Simone Borg, who both worked on numerous environment conservation projects and advocated for the conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee.

The video was produced through funding acquired from the Small Initiative Support Scheme managed by the Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector, supported by the Ministry for Inclusion and the Voluntary Sector.