The barn owl (Tyto alba) is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is found in most parts of the world, with one major lineage in the New World, one in Australasia, and another in Eurasia and Africa. The 28 subspecies, between 33 and 39 cm (13 and 15 in) in length, have wingspans ranging from 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). Their colours vary, but most have mottled grey or brown plumage and paler underparts, with a white, heart- shaped face. The barn owl relies on acute hearing to detect small mammals and other prey, hunting almost exclusively at night. It does not hoot, but utters an eerie, drawn-out shriek. It mates for life unless one of a pair dies, when a new pair bond may be formed. The nest is in a hollow tree, old building or cliff; the female does all the incubation, and she and the young chicks rely on the male for food. When large numbers of small prey are available, barn owl populations can expand rapidly. Globally, the species is not threatened, except for some subspecies with restricted ranges.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barn_owl
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
706:
In China, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang interred the final bodies in the Qianling Mausoleum, which remained unopened until the 1960s. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qianling_Mausoleum
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 (pictured). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raft_of_the_Medusa
1950:
A mentally ill Buddhist monk set fire to the Golden Pavilion at Kinkaku-ji, destroying what is now one of the most popular tourist destinations in Japan. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinkaku-ji
1976:
More than a year after the end of the Vietnam War, North and South Vietnam officially united under communist rule to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam
2002:
American aviator Steve Fossett became the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon, completing an almost 14-day trip after landing in Queensland, Australia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Fossett
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
devoir: (archaic, often in plural) Duty, business; something that one must do. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/devoir
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
I do not consider myself less ignorant than most people. I have been and still am a seeker, but I have ceased to question stars and books; I have begun to listen to the teachings my blood whispers to me. My story is not a pleasant one; it is neither sweet nor harmonious, as invented stories are; it has the taste of nonsense and chaos, of madness and dreams — like the lives of all men who stop deceiving themselves. Each man's life represents the road toward himself, and attempt at such a road, the intimation of a path. No man has ever been entirely and completely himself. Yet each one strives to become that — one in an awkward, the other in a more intelligent way, each as best he can. --Hermann Hesse https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hermann_Hesse
daily-article-l@lists.wikimedia.org