The white-eyed river martin (Pseudochelidon sirintarae) is a passerine
bird in the swallow family. First found in 1968, it is known only from
a single wintering site in Thailand, and may be extinct, since there
have been no confirmed sightings since 1980 despite targeted surveys in
Thailand and Cambodia. The adult has mainly glossy greenish-black
plumage, a white rump, and a tail with two long central feathers that
widen to a racket-shaped tip. It has a white eye ring and a broad,
bright greenish-yellow bill. The juvenile lacks the tail ornaments and
is browner. Like other swallows, it feeds on insects caught in flight,
and its wide bill suggests that it may take relatively large species. It
roosts in reed beds in winter, and may nest in river sandbanks. Its
apparent demise may have been hastened by trapping, loss of habitat and
dam construction. The martin is one of only two birds endemic to
Thailand. The country's government has featured the bird on a stamp and
a commemorative coin. (This article is part of a featured topic: River
martin.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/River_martin>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1423:
Hundred Years' War: The English and their Burgundian allies
were victorious over the French at the Battle of Cravant near Auxerre,
France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cravant>
1777:
The Second Continental Congress passed a resolution
commissioning the Marquis de Lafayette as a major general in the
American revolutionary forces.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert_du_Motier,_Marquis_de_Lafayette>
1941:
The Holocaust: Under instructions from Adolf Hitler, Hermann
Göring authorised SS General Reinhard Heydrich to handle preparations
for "the Final Solution of the Jewish question".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Solution>
1991:
Soviet Special Purpose Police Unit troops killed seven
Lithuanian customs officials in Medininkai in the most serious attack of
their campaign against Lithuanian border posts.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_OMON_assaults_on_Lithuanian_border_posts>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
aposematism:
(biology, chiefly zoology) An adaptation, especially a form of
coloration, that warns off potential predators.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/aposematism>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by
their intentions rather than their results.
--Milton Friedman
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Milton_Friedman>