The Ornithological Collections at the
National Museum of Natural History, Mdina

The practice of killing, mounting and collecting of birds in Malta dates back to the latter part of the 19th Century when the technique of skinning and preserving bird skins was perfected through the use of better preservatives.

At the turn of the 20th Century Malta had its first “National” Museum holding collections of archaeological, art and natural history interest. Birds figured prominently in the Valletta Museum which was later destroyed during the second world war.

When in 1973 the new National Museum of Natural History was inaugurated in the city of Mdina, much of the upper floors where dedicated to birds, mostly birds taken locally. A large systematically arranged display was set up for public viewing. Added to this birds also feature in a series of dioramas highlighting Maltese ecosystems.

Today the collection amounts to almost 4,000 mounted birds, the majority of which are not on public viewing, as well as bird nests, skulls and eggs. The oldest specimen dates back to the mid 1800s; a Common Gull taken by C.A.Wright (Click to view). Various private collections where acquired along the years, some of which are of particular importance. In recent years, the collections are continuously being augmented through various confiscations of protected species by the authorities.

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