The wolf (Canis lupus) is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. It is the largest extant member of Canidae, males averaging 40 kg (88 lb) and females 37 kg (82 lb). On average, wolves measure 105–160 cm (41–63 in) in length and 80–85 cm (31–33 in) at shoulder height. Compared to coyotes and jackals, wolves have more pointed ears and muzzles, as well as shorter torsos and longer tails. The fur of a wolf is usually mottled white, brown, gray, and black. Up to 38 subspecies have been recognized, including the domestic dog. Wolves live in nuclear families consisting of a mated pair accompanied by their offspring. Fights over territory are among the principal causes of mortality. The wolf is mainly a carnivore and feeds primarily on large wild hooved mammals, though it also eats smaller animals, livestock, carrion, and garbage. Most recorded wolf attacks on people have been attributed to rabies. They have been both respected and feared in human societies.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1832:
The Reform Act, which is widely credited with launching modern democracy in the United Kingdom, received royal assent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reform_Act_1832
1900:
American temperance activist Carrie Nation entered a saloon in Kiowa, Kansas, and destroyed its stock of alcoholic beverages with rocks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrie_Nation
1981:
The Israeli Air Force attacked and disabled the Osirak nuclear reactor, under the assumption that it was about to start producing plutonium to further an Iraqi nuclear-weapons program. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Opera
1998:
Three white supremacists murdered James Byrd Jr., an African American, by chaining him behind a pickup truck and dragging him along an asphalt road in Jasper, Texas. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_James_Byrd_Jr.
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
merit: 1. (transitive) To deserve, to earn. 2. (intransitive) To be deserving or worthy. 3. (transitive, obsolete, rare) To reward. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/merit
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. The only way they can inherit the freedom we have known is if we fight for it, protect it, defend it, and then hand it to them with the well fought lessons of how they in their lifetime must do the same. And if you and I don't do this, then you and I may well spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it once was like in America when men were free. --Ronald Reagan https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan