The rufous-crowned sparrow (Aimophila ruficeps) is a smallish American
sparrow. Isolated populations of this perching bird can be found across
the Southwestern United States and much of the interior of Mexico.
Twelve subspecies are generally recognized (A. r. boucardi pictured),
though up to eighteen have been suggested. The bird has a brown back
with darker streaks and gray underparts. The crown is rufous, and the
face and supercilium are gray with a brown or rufous streak extending
from each eye and a thick black malar streak. The birds are ungraceful
fliers, preferring to hop along the ground. They feed primarily on seeds
in the winter and insects in the spring and summer. They are often
territorial, with males guarding their territory through song and
displays. The birds are monogamous and breed during spring, laying two
to five eggs in cup-shaped, well-hidden nests. Adult sparrows are preyed
upon by house cats and small raptors, while young may be taken by a
range of mammals and reptiles. Although classified as a species of least
concern, some subspecies are threatened by habitat destruction, and one
may be extinct.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rufous-crowned_sparrow>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1777:
American Revolutionary War: American forces under the command
of George Washington repulsed a British attack at the Battle of the
Assunpink Creek near Trenton, New Jersey.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Assunpink_Creek>
1920:
Under the leadership of U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell
Palmer, Department of Justice agents launched a series of raids against
radical leftists and anarchists across 30 cities in 23 states.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmer_Raids>
1963:
Vietnam War: The Viet Cong won its first major victory in the
Battle of Ap Bac.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ap_Bac>
1975:
Lalit Narayan Mishra, the Indian Minister of Railways, was
assassinated in a bomb blast at Samastipur, Bihar.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lalit_Narayan_Mishra>
2004:
The Stardust space probe flew by the comet Wild 2 and collected
particle samples from its coma, which were later returned to Earth.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/81P/Wild>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
articulated skeleton:
(paleontology) A fossil skeleton found all in one piece with the bones
still arranged in the proper order.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/articulated_skeleton>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there
always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant
thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured
by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as
good as your knowledge."
--Isaac Asimov
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov>