The Song Thrush is a thrush that breeds across much of Eurasia. It has
brown upperparts and black-spotted cream or buff underparts and has
three recognised subspecies. Its distinctive song, which has repeated
musical phrases, has frequently been referred to in poetry. The Song
Thrush breeds in forests, gardens and parks, and is partially migratory
with many birds wintering in southern Europe, North Africa and the
Middle East; it has also been introduced into New Zealand and Australia.
Although it is not threatened globally, there have been serious
population declines in parts of Europe, possibly due to changes in
farming practices. The Song Thrush builds a neat mud-lined cup nest in a
bush or tree and lays four or five dark-spotted blue eggs. It is
omnivorous and has the habit of using a favourite stone as an "anvil" on
which to smash snails. Like other perching birds (passerines), it is
affected by external and internal parasites and is vulnerable to
predation by cats and birds of prey.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_Thrush>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1265:
Second Barons' War: Royal forces under Prince Edward defeated
Baronial forces under Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester at the
Battle of Evesham near Evesham, Worcestershire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Evesham>
1796:
French Revolutionary Wars: The French Army of Italy under
Napoleon crushed an Austrian brigade in the Battle of Lonato.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lonato>
1974:
A bomb placed by a neo-fascist group exploded on a train of the
Ferrovie dello Stato while on the Bologna–Florence railway.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italicus_Express_bombing_1974>
1984:
Exactly a year after he came to power in the Republic of Upper
Volta through a military coup, President Thomas Sankara changed its name
to Burkina Faso (flag pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burkina_Faso>
1991:
An explosion on the Greek cruise ship MTS Oceanos ruptured its
hull and it sank off the east coast of South Africa, but all 571 on
board were saved.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTS_Oceanos>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
yarl:
A deep, guttural vocal style with affected pronunciation, characteristic
of male grunge and postgrunge singers of the 1990s and early 2000s.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/yarl>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its
defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror
and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is
stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat
you. For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a
weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus —
and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn
from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter
swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter
stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old
hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve;
that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal
itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of
peace.
--Barack Obama
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Barack_Obama>
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