**1. Introduction**

#### **1.1. Maltese Islands and local honey history**

The production of high-quality Maltese honey has been renowned since ancient times. The Ancient Greeks and Romans used to call the island ελίτη (Melite) meaning "honey-sweet". Under the Arab rule, the name "Melite" was changed to "Malta".

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## **1.2. Historical aspect**

In ancient history, honey from Malta was considered as a delicacy and was also exported from the island. Research suggests that it was the Phoenicians who introduced the domestication of beekeeping in Malta. The Phoenicians brought the knowledge of apiaries and earthenware jars construction. In fact some Punic apiaries cut out in the rock still remain today (**Figure 1**). During the Roman rule beekeeping continued in the Maltese Islands, as observed by the presence of Roman beehives. Honey was very important to the Roman Empire and documents were discovered where people who stole honey were brought to justice. The Maltese honey was renowned for its spicy and blended taste [1].

In the Maltese Islands, there are a number of sites and places that have names originating from the apicultural industry e.g. "Wied il-Għasel" which means Valley of Honey and "Imġiebaħ" which means Apiaries. These names from the apicultural industry and the many ancient remains found around the island prove the basis of the bee population and honey production on the Maltese Islands.

The production of honey in ancient times was much less than today's production. In fact, there was only one harvest season, the wild thyme honey season, which was on the 26th of July (religious Feast of St. Anne) [1]. The traditional techniques used in bee-honey production started to change in the 1950s as the first movable frame hives and tools were introduced. The hives and tools needed were generally imported from Britain. The hives imported were copied and then produced locally. Till today, the British Standard hive is usually used in Malta. The biggest drop in the use of jars was in the early 1990s when a Varroa mite infestation resulted in the elimination of about two-thirds of the entire bee colonies on the islands [2].

#### **1.3. The Maltese bee**

The Maltese Islands have their own endemic bee type, called *Apis melliferaruttneri* [3]. This endemic sub-species of honeybee is known to have inhabited the Maltese Islands for

**Figure 1.** An ancient apiary in Malta, dating from the Punic era. The jars used to be placed in the wall holes. The beekeepers used to enter from the small door to add extensions to the back of the jars.

centuries. It is a sub-species of the Western honeybee or European honeybee (*Apis mellifera*), but is different from other Mediterranean bees. Up to recent times, it was the sole honeybee species in the Maltese Islands.

The Maltese bee is slightly smaller in size, dark in colour with apparently no yellow bands, and is resistant to certain diseases, but is vicious and highly active. Comparing the Maltese bee to the North African bee and the Sicilian bee, it results that it has shorter legs and wings. The wings of the Maltese bee are also much narrower. It has also a very wide abdomen. The hair on its abdomen is also very long. After centuries of local colonization, the Maltese bee has adapted well to the Maltese Islands climate and environment [3].

However, *Apis melliferaruttneri* is a very productive bee as it can work on windy days and also during very hot weather. During the hot summer of Malta, when temperatures can increase to 40°C, the bee tends to work early in the morning and in the afternoon till sunset while taking a short break during mid-day. From local beekeepers' observations, it cleans the hive very well and removes any foreign material promptly. Nevertheless the drawback is its aggressiveness.
