The green rosella (Platycercus caledonicus) is a parrot native to the
Australian state of Tasmania and some Bass Strait islands. The species
was described by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788.
At up to 37 cm (14.5 in) long, it is the largest species in its genus.
Its underparts, neck and head are yellow, with a red band above the beak
and violet-blue cheeks. The back is mostly black and green, and its long
tail blue and green. The female has duller yellow plumage and more
prominent red markings, as well as a smaller beak. Found in a wide range
of habitats with some form of tree cover, the green rosella is
predominantly herbivorous, consuming seeds, berries, nuts, fruits, and
flowers, but it may also eat insect larvae and insects such as psyllids.
Nesting takes place in tree hollows. The green rosella is widespread
across Tasmania, but the King Island subspecies has been classed as
vulnerable.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_rosella>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1816:
The French frigate Méduse ran aground off the coast of
present-day Mauritania, with the survivors escaping on a makeshift raft,
depicted in Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the Medusa
(pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raft_of_the_Medusa>
1881:
U.S. president James A. Garfield was fatally shot at the
Baltimore and Potomac Railroad station in Washington, D.C.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_James_A._Garfield>
1941:
An SS unit arrived in Vilnius, Lithuania, and began the
systematic execution of up to 100,000 people over the next three years.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponary_massacre>
2013:
The International Astronomical Union announced that the fourth
and fifth moons of Pluto to be discovered would be named Kerberos and
Styx, respectively.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Styx_%28moon%29>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
tinge:
1. (transitive) To add a small amount of colour; to tint; (by extension)
to add a small amount of some other thing.
2. (transitive, figuratively) To affect or alter slightly, particularly
due to the actual or metaphorical influence of some element or thing.
3. (intransitive) To change slightly in shade due to the addition of
colour; (by extension) to change slightly in quality due to the addition
of some other thing.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tinge>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
The doctrine you desire, absolute, perfect dogma that alone
provides wisdom, does not exist. Nor should you long for a perfect
doctrine, my friend. Rather, you should long for the perfection of
yourself. The deity is within you, not in ideas and books. Truth is
lived, not taught.
--Hermann Hesse
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hermann_Hesse>