The black-necked grebe (Podiceps nigricollis) is in the grebe family of
water birds. During the breeding season, the head, neck, and breast are
dark, with some yellow behind the eyes; the flanks are tawny rufous to
maroon-chestnut; and the abdomen is white. The non-breeding bird has
greyish flanks and no yellow feathers. This species is present in parts
of Africa, Eurasia, and the Americas. It catches insects on the surface
of the water, in flight, or occasionally on foliage, and dives to catch
crustaceans, molluscs, tadpoles, and small frogs and fish. It makes a
floating cup nest on an open lake, in which three or four eggs hatch
after a 21-day incubation period. After about 10 days, the parents
divide the brood between themselves, and after roughly 10 more days, the
chicks become independent. The black-necked grebe travels as far as
6,000 kilometres (3,700 mi) during migration, in the course of which it
pauses to moult.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-necked_grebe>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1902:
The Dorchester Heights Monument, memorializing the siege of
Boston during the American Revolutionary War, was dedicated.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorchester_Heights_Monument>
1957:
A plane crash on the slopes of Mount Manunggal killed
Philippine president Ramon Magsaysay and 24 others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1957_Cebu_Douglas_C-47_crash>
1979:
The Penmanshiel Tunnel in the Scottish Borders region of
Scotland collapsed during refurbishing construction, killing two
workers, and leading to the abandonment of the tunnel.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penmanshiel_Tunnel>
2004:
Unrest in Kosovo broke out, resulting in the deaths of 28, the
wounding of more than 600 others, and the destruction of several Serb
Orthodox churches and shrines.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_unrest_in_Kosovo>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
wet the shamrock:
(idiomatic, intransitive, Ireland, informal) To go for an alcoholic
drink, especially as part of a victory celebration or on Saint Patrick's
Day.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/wet_the_shamrock>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Man dwells apart, though not alone, He walks among his peers
unread; The best of thoughts which he hath known For lack of listeners
are not said.
--Jean Ingelow
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jean_Ingelow>