The grey jay (Perisoreus canadensis) is a bird of the crow family, Corvidae. It is found in boreal forests of North America north to the tree line, and in the Rocky Mountains subalpine zone south to New Mexico and Arizona. A fairly large songbird, it has pale grey underparts, darker grey upperparts, and a grey-white head with a darker grey nape. Grey jays live on permanent territories in coniferous forests, surviving in winter months on food cached throughout their territory in warmer periods. The birds form monogamous mating pairs, accompanied by a juvenile from the previous season. Grey jays adapt to human activity in their territories and may approach humans for food. The species is associated with mythological figures of several First Nations cultures, including Wisakedjak, a benevolent figure whose name was anglicized to whisky jack, another name for the bird. In 2016, an expert panel and online poll conducted by Canadian Geographic magazine recommended the grey jay as the national bird of Canada.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_jay
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
626:
During the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Prince Li Shimin led his forces to assassinate his rival brothers in a coup for the imperial throne of the Tang dynasty. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xuanwu_Gate_Incident
1644:
The combined forces of the Scottish Covenanters and the English Parliamentarians defeated the Royalists at the Battle of Marston Moor, one of the decisive encounters of the English Civil War. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Marston_Moor
1816:
The French frigate Méduse ran aground off the coast of today's Mauritania, with the survivors escaping on a makeshift raft, which was depicted in Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the Medusa. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raft_of_the_Medusa
1917:
White residents of East St. Louis, Illinois, burned sections of the city and shot black inhabitants as they escaped the flames. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_St._Louis_riots
1937:
Aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean during an attempt to make a circumnavigational flight. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelia_Earhart
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
malapert: (archaic) Cheeky, impudent, saucy. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/malapert
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
I feared that the enemy might have nearly surrounded the Little Round Top, and only a desperate chance was left for us. My ammunition was soon exhausted. My men were firing their last shot and getting ready to "club" their muskets. It was imperative to strike before we were struck by this overwhelming force in a hand-to-hand fight, which we could not probably have withstood or survived. At that crisis, I ordered the bayonet. The word was enough. --Joshua Chamberlain https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Joshua_Chamberlain
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