Orchids of the Maltese Islands (by Stephen Mifsud)
About the Book:
Orchids of the Maltese Islands contains the most up-to-date information about the orchids of Malta, backed by twelve years of surveying and research by botanist and taxonomist Stephen Mifsud. The book features:
All species occurring in the Maltese Islands, including new species to science described from Malta.
Species profiles covering nomenclature, etymology, habitat, distribution, frequency, a detailed morphological description, species variability, closely related species, taxonomic notes and local history and a quick identification note.
Observed pollinators for each orchid
Identification keys for determining species in the field.
More than 300 photos from orchids in Malta.
Distribution maps for each species
Evolution, ecology, classification, hybridisation, and fascinating pollination techniques that are unique to orchids
Four in-depth taxonomic discussions for the academic reader.
Reference tables for quick access to information: flowering periods, common names, pollinators, taxa lists, etc.
A photographic collage of orchids found in neighbouring Sicily.
An extensive glossary with 110 terms.
About the Author:
Stephen Mifsud is a self-taught botanist since 2001 and who graduated as a plant taxonomist in 2013 at the University of Edinburgh. His passion for wild plants led to him to create the now popular website www.MaltaWildPlants.com in 2002 which he still maintains and updates till present date. His studies of the Maltese flora have progressed throughout the years, where he has written some 40 research papers and described five taxa of plants new to science, three of which are endemic orchids. He participated in the red-list assessment of Mediterranean monocots and some endemic species for IUCN and is currently studying local species of fungi. He has a particular interest in orchids since 2007 and his research and observations are gathered in this book.
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28 €
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49 €
Hardback*
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48 €
53 €
* Sold out // ^ Free postage to Malta
Bank Transfer using IBAN
IBAN: MT76 BNIF 14502 0000 0000 0195 120101
SWIFT CODE: BNIFMTMT
BANK: BANIF Bank, Victoria
SORT CODE: 14502
Credits:
Author: Stephen Mifsud
Photos: Stephen Mifsud
Editors: Rebecca Kemp and Simone Cutajar
Designer: Jan Mertens
Map plotting: Philippe Meinhardt
Illustrations: Simone Cutajar*
Coordination: Nika Levikov
Publisher: GreenHouse Malta
Printer: BestPrint Malta
* Adapted from illustrations by Eliza Klopfenstein
Reviews:
The Orchid Book Review Site: "I recommend this book in the first place to every Maltese nature lover and to everyone, but especially to those who visits Malta to discover the local nature." [Read more]
Blog by Alfred Baldacchino (25/2/19): " This comprehensive reference on indigenous orchids is not only a much needed updated scientific platform for locals and other foreign botanists, but also for orchid enthusiasts, as well as for educators, planners, as well as those passionate about Maltese natural history. " [Read more]
Blurb by Edwin Lanfranco :
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A much-needed work which puts some sense to the fascinating but taxonomically extremely difficult world of the orchids. Author Stephen Mifsud has done a thorough and painstaking exercise in bringing together all the information available about the orchids which grow (or grew!) wild in Malta. He provides a helpful key to the identification of the Maltese Orchids. The book is also lavishly illustrated by photographs, mainly by Mifsud himself which, apart from adding to the attractiveness of the book, are also indispensable to the user to appreciate the considerable variability which can be observed in many of the species. Indispensable for anybody with an interest in the Maltese and Mediterranean flora.
Blurb by Pietro Minissale :
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Orchids of Maltese Islands is much more than a descriptive guide of Maltese orchids; Stephen Mifsud, reference botanist for the Maltese Islands, excellent connoisseur of the flora that studies and describes with great passion, wrote a true treatise suitable for expert botanists, as well as naturalists and neophytes attracted to this subject. He leads us by the hand on one of the most mysterious and extraordinary families of Angiosperms for the coevolutionary processes that have led to a great diversity and specialization.
Much information is given on the biology of Mediterranean orchids but placed in Maltese microcosm where climatic stress, intense urbanization, reckless collections of orchid specimens, make life difficult for these plants and in fact many entities, before recorded, became rare or even extinct on the islands.
For the nearly 40 species described, all possible information is provided and among them the description, the taxonomy, the history of the records and the current distribution in the Maltese Islands. The dichotomous keys accustom the reader to the correct identification of the taxa. Further information is given on synonymy, on the flowering period. But above all the beautiful photos, really many for each taxon, shooted in their habitat, also allow the non-expert to recognize the different species and to appreciate the details and beauty. The author's discussion of the origin of Ophrys melitensis, endemism of the archipelago, is interesting and very reasoned.
Overall, a book that in the method and in the contents is a model of proper high level scientific dissemination that can bring many readers to appreciate these natural wonders, but attention! never collect, just take the picture!
Attention: Send email to the author [email link] to confirm your payment and write your postal address where the book has to be sent. You will receive confirmation when book is dispatched and tracking number if it has to be sent by registered mail. All books are signed by the author. The book is currently sold at Merlin Library (Sliema and Hamrun), Meli Bookshop (Valletta), and in Gozo from Bargate Bookshop, Bookworm and Sunrise Petshop and Nursery.