From high-end restaurants to architectural gems, Valletta’s popular with locals and foreigners alike for its countless offerings – however, it seems like it’s not just humans that this capital city attracts… 

Local environmental NGO BirdLife Malta took to social media to share some lesser-known facts about Valletta’s Ficus trees – specifically the ones standing opposite the law courts.

Turns out these trees, together with others spread around the city, serve as a temporary home for over 13,000 White Wagtails (Zakak Abjad) every single night!

In a bid to raise awareness about this lesser-known phenomenon, the NGO collaborated with the Valletta Local Council to attach some information sheets to these trees.

According to said sheets, “White Wagtails spread out in the countryside to find food during the day,” however, in the evening, “they gather in groups to sleep in sheltered trees.” Such places are known as roosts.

“Great Siege Square and St John Square are the largest White wagtail roosts in Malta. In winter, oftentimes more than 10,000 birds gather to sleep there,” the NGO continued.

Because of this, the aforementioned sites are considered to be ‘Important Bird Areas’ (IBAs).

These birds make quite the journey before settling into their temporary Valletta homes…

Since they do not nest in Malta, White Wagtails pass through Malta in autumn and spring on their way to Africa from Europe. Because of this, a good number of them stop to spend the winter in our capital.

“From bird-ringing studies, we know for certain that a number of White Wagtails that reach Malta come from Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Denmark, and Sweden,” the NGO added.