The Western Jackdaw is a passerine bird in the crow family. The name derives from the word "jack", meaning "small", and "daw", its native English name. Found across Europe, western Asia and North Africa, it is mostly resident, although northern and eastern populations migrate south in winter. Four subspecies are recognised, which mainly differ in the colouration of the plumage on the head and nape. Linnaeus first described it formally. Later analysis of its DNA shows that, with its closest relative the Daurian Jackdaw, it is an early offshoot from the genus Corvus, and possibly distinct enough to warrant reclassification in a separate genus, Coloeus. Measuring 34–39 centimetres (13–15 in) in length, the Western Jackdaw has black plumage with a grey nape and distinctive pale-grey irises. It is gregarious and vocal, living in small groups with a complex social structure in farmland, open woodland, on coastal cliffs, and in urban settings. An omnivorous and opportunistic feeder, it eats a wide variety of plant material and invertebrates, as well as food waste from urban areas. Western Jackdaws are monogamous and build simple nests of sticks in cavities in trees, cliffs, or buildings.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Jackdaw

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1500:

Portuguese explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral and his crew landed in Brazil and claimed the land for Portugal. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_%C3%81lvares_Cabral

1622:

An Anglo-Persian force combined to take over the Portuguese garrison at Hormuz Island in the Persian Gulf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_Ormuz_(1622)

1930:

France, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States signed the London Naval Treaty, regulating submarine warfare and limiting military ship building. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Naval_Treaty

1948:

Civil War in Mandatory Palestine: The Jewish paramilitary group Haganah captured Haifa from the Arab Liberation Army. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Haifa_(1948)

1969:

British yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston won the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race to complete the first solo non-stop circumnavigation of the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunday_Times_Golden_Globe_Race

1998:

Disney's Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida opened, covering more than 500 acres (2 km2), making it the largest single Disney theme park in the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney%27s_Animal_Kingdom

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

crosswordese: The jargon of crossword puzzle answers, classically consisting of rare, archaic, or dialectal words. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/crosswordese

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Love is the emblem of eternity; it confounds all notion of time; effaces all memory of a beginning, all fear of an end.   --Anne Louise Germaine de Staël https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Anne_Louise_Germaine_de_Sta%C3%ABl