of three species in the genus Cathartes, in the family Cathartidae, it
ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of South America,
inhabiting subtropical forests, shrublands, pastures, and deserts. Like
all New World vultures, it is not related to the Old World vultures of
Europe, Africa, and Asia, but looks nearly identical to them because of
convergent evolution, in which unrelated animals adapting to the same
conditions are similarly shaped by natural selection. The turkey vulture
is a scavenger and feeds almost exclusively on carrion. It finds its
food using its keen eyes and sense of smell, flying low enough to detect
the gases produced by decaying animal corpses. In flight, it uses
thermals to move through the air, flapping its wings infrequently. It
roosts in large community groups. Lacking a vocal organ, its only
vocalizations are grunts or low hisses. It nests in caves, hollow trees,
or thickets. Each year it generally raises two chicks. It has very few
natural predators, and has legal protection in the United States under
the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_vulture>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1806:
War of the Fourth Coalition: French troops under Napoleon
engaged Russian forces in both the Battles of Pultusk and Golymin.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Golymin>
1825:
Imperial Russian Army officers led about 3,000 soldiers in a
protest against Nicholas I's assumption of the throne after his elder
brother Constantine removed himself from the line of succession.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decembrist_revolt>
1900:
A relief crew arrived at the lighthouse on the Flannan Isles of
Scotland and discovered that the previous crew had disappeared without a
trace.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flannan_Isles>
1968:
The Communist Party of the Philippines, which is fighting an
insurgency, was established by Jose Maria Sison.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_Maria_Sison>
1996:
The Federation of Korean Trade Unions called upon its 1.2
million members to walk off the job, beginning the largest organized
strike in the nation's history,
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996%E2%80%9397_strikes_in_South_Korea>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
rebarbative:
Irritating, repellent.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rebarbative>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Political leaders are never leaders. For leaders we have to look
to the Awakeners! Lao Tse, Buddha, Socrates, Jesus, Milarepa, Gurdjiev,
Krishnamurti.
--Henry Miller
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Henry_Miller>
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