Il-Ħmar Malti: ‘Highly Endangered’ Maltese Donkey Described In Detail For The First Time Ever
For the first time ever, a highly endangered Maltese animal which some of us may have never even seen before has been properly identified and described in detail.
The “ħmar Malti”, which literally means Maltese donkey, was the subject of a years-long study by naturalist-botanist siblings Arnold and Jeffrey Sciberras along with equestrian trainer Gina Curmi. To complete the study, historical images and accounts along with hearsay were “intensively studied”, with any references to the animal being taken into account “to average proper morphometrics of the breed”.
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By the end, the research eventually led to a handful of “closely-related specimens fitting the breed description”… but the search had ended up taking a decade.
The study found that “urgent conversation measures” are needed to help protect the highly-endangered Maltese donkey, with the research going into larger and much broader research towards a book about landraces, both flora and fauna, that the Maltese islands have to offer.
Have you ever seen a ħmar Malti?
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