derives from the word "jack", meaning "small", and "daw", its native
English name. Found across Europe, western Asia and North Africa, it is
mostly resident, although northern and eastern populations migrate south
in winter. Four subspecies are recognised, which mainly differ in the
colouration of the plumage on the head and nape. Linnaeus first
described it formally. Later analysis of its DNA shows that, with its
closest relative the Daurian Jackdaw, it is an early offshoot from the
genus Corvus, and possibly distinct enough to warrant reclassification
in a separate genus, Coloeus. Measuring 34–39 centimetres
(13–15 in) in length, the Western Jackdaw has black plumage with a
grey nape and distinctive pale-grey irises. It is gregarious and vocal,
living in small groups with a complex social structure in farmland, open
woodland, on coastal cliffs, and in urban settings. An omnivorous and
opportunistic feeder, it eats a wide variety of plant material and
invertebrates, as well as food waste from urban areas. Western Jackdaws
are monogamous and build simple nests of sticks in cavities in trees,
cliffs, or buildings.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Jackdaw>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1500:
Portuguese explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral and his crew landed
in Brazil and claimed the land for Portugal.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_%C3%81lvares_Cabral>
1622:
An Anglo-Persian force combined to take over the Portuguese
garrison at Hormuz Island in the Persian Gulf.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_Ormuz_(1622)>
1930:
France, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States
signed the London Naval Treaty, regulating submarine warfare and
limiting military ship building.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Naval_Treaty>
1948:
Civil War in Mandatory Palestine: The Jewish paramilitary group
Haganah captured Haifa from the Arab Liberation Army.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Haifa_(1948)>
1969:
British yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston won the Sunday Times
Golden Globe Race to complete the first solo non-stop circumnavigation
of the world.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunday_Times_Golden_Globe_Race>
1998:
Disney's Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in
Florida opened, covering more than 500 acres (2 km2), making it the
largest single Disney theme park in the world.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney%27s_Animal_Kingdom>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
crosswordese:
The jargon of crossword puzzle answers, classically consisting of rare,
archaic, or dialectal words.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/crosswordese>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Love is the emblem of eternity; it confounds all notion of time;
effaces all memory of a beginning, all fear of an end.
--Anne Louise Germaine de Staël
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Anne_Louise_Germaine_de_Sta%C3%ABl>
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