The Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus) is a bird in the sparrow
family with a rich chestnut crown and nape, and a black patch on pure
white cheeks on both sexes. It is widespread in the towns and cities of
eastern Asia, but in Europe it is a bird of the lightly wooded open
countryside. It is not closely related to the American tree sparrow. Its
untidy nest is built within a natural cavity, a hole in a building, or
the large nest of a Eurasian magpie or white stork. It feeds mainly on
seeds, but invertebrates are also consumed, particularly during the
breeding season. Parasites, diseases and birds of prey take their toll,
and the typical life span is about two years. There have been large
declines in western European populations, in part due to increased use
of herbicides and a decline in winter stubble fields. The species has
long been depicted in Chinese and Japanese art, and has appeared on the
postage stamps of Antigua and Barbuda, Belarus, Belgium, Cambodia, the
Central African Republic, China, Estonia, The Gambia and Taiwan.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurasian_tree_sparrow>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1890:
London's City and South London Railway (locomotive pictured),
the first deep-level underground railway in the world, officially
opened, running a distance of 3.2 mi (5.1 km) between the City of
London and Stockwell.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_and_South_London_Railway>
1960:
At the Kasakela chimpanzee community in Tanzania, Jane Goodall
observed a chimpanzee using a grass stalk to extract termites from a
termite hill, the first recorded case of tool use by animals.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kasakela_chimpanzee_community>
2010:
In the first aviation occurrence for an Airbus A380, Qantas
Flight 32 suffered an uncontained engine failure and safely made an
emergency landing at Singapore Changi Airport with no casualties.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qantas_Flight_32>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
cloud-headed:
Having one's head in the clouds: prone to daydreaming, or thinking
impractically.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cloud-headed>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Christ whose glory fills the skies,Christ, the true, the only
light,Sun of Righteousness, arise,Triumph o'er the shades of night;Day-
spring from on high, be near, Day-star in my heart appear.
--Augustus Toplady
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Augustus_Toplady>