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The earliest comments on bird observations in Malta have been traced back to a French monk almost 450 years ago.

The observations going back to 1575 are recorded in a new book, History of Ornithology in Malta, published by Birdlife this week.

The book traces all written references to bird observation and study in Malta from the 16th century to the latest EU Life research projects carried out by Birdlife.

Authored by Joe Sultana and John Borg, the book documents findings from museums and libraries in Europe which make reference to ornithology in Malta.

The research from the past 25 years includes correspondence between Antonio Schembri and ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte as well as the diaries of Charles Wright, a British pioneer of Maltese ornithology.

According to the authors, the book discloses how the mysterious seasonal comings and goings of birds fascinated people down the ages.

The publication consists of 13 chapters, including an introductory one that tackles bird imagery and symbolism in Maltese culture from the earliest Neolithic times through the Christian era.

It then progresses through a period of 300 years from the earliest contributions to the new era in Maltese ornithology ushered in during the 1960s by the foundation of the Malta Ornithological Society – now Birdlife.