The rock martin (Ptyonoprogne fuligula) is a small swallow that is
resident in central and southern Africa. It breeds in the mountains, and
at lower levels in rocky areas and towns. It has mainly brown plumage
and white "windows" on the spread tail. Its call is a soft twitter. The
sexes are similar in appearance. The martin hunts along cliff faces for
flying insects. It breeds under cliff overhangs or on man-made
structures using mud pellets to build a bowl or half-bowl nest with a
soft lining. The bird is a solitary breeder, but small groups may nest
close together in suitable locations. A typical clutch has two to three
eggs, which are white with brown and grey blotches. Both adults
incubate the eggs for 16–19 days and feed the chicks. Fledging takes
another 22–24 days. The small martin is caught in flight by several
falcons, such as hobbies, but it faces no major threats. Because of its
extensive range and large stable population, it is assessed as a least-
concern species on the IUCN Red List. (This article is part of a
featured topic: Crag martins.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Crag_martins>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1846:
The first officially recorded baseball game in U.S. history
using modern rules was played in Hoboken, New Jersey, with the "New York
Nine" defeating the New York Knickerbockers 23–1.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baseball>
1921:
A group of Black and Tans burned down the village of
Knockcroghery, Ireland, as an act of vengeance for the killing of a
British general two days earlier.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knockcroghery>
1965:
Nguyễn Cao Kỳ, the head of the South Vietnam Air Force, was
appointed prime minister at the head of a military regime, ending two
years of short-lived military juntas.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nguy%E1%BB%85n_Cao_K%E1%BB%B3>
2006:
The ceremonial "first stone" of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault,
a facility established to preserve a wide variety of plant seeds from
locations worldwide in an underground cavern in Spitsbergen, Norway, was
laid.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_Global_Seed_Vault>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
Juneteenth:
(US) Also more fully as Juneteenth Day: a holiday celebrated in many
states of the United States of America on June 19, commemorating the end
of slavery.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Juneteenth>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a
proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are
free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights
of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection
heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired
labor.
--Gordon Granger
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gordon_Granger>