The Mascarene parrot (Mascarinus mascarin), now extinct, was endemic to the Mascarene island of Réunion in the western Indian Ocean. It has historically been grouped taxonomically with the Psittaculini parrots or the vasa parrots, with the latest genetic study favouring the former group. It was 35 cm (14 in) in length with a large red bill and long, rounded tail feathers. Its legs were red, and it had naked red skin around the eyes and nostrils. It had a black facial mask and partially white tail feathers. Very little is known about the bird in life. The Mascarene parrot was first mentioned in 1674, and live specimens were later brought to Europe, where they lived in captivity. The species was scientifically described in 1771. Only two stuffed specimens exist today, in Paris and Vienna. The date and cause of extinction for the Mascarene parrot are unclear; it is probable that the species became extinct prior to 1800, and may have become extinct in the wild even earlier. Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mascarene_parrot> _______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries: 1914: World War I: The Royal Navy dreadnought HMS Audacious was sunk by a mine, but its loss was kept secret for four years. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Audacious_%281912%29> 1946: Inter-religious riots, in which Hindu mobs targeted Muslim families, began in the Indian state of Bihar, resulting in anywhere between 2,000 and 30,000 deaths. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1946_Bihar_riots> 1958: General Ayub Khan deposed Iskander Mirza to become the second President of Pakistan. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayub_Khan_%28President_of_Pakistan%29> 2004: The Boston Red Sox completed a sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals to win the World Series, breaking the so-called "Curse of the Bambino". <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_World_Series> _____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day: fruitless: 1. Bearing no fruit; barren. 2. (figuratively) Unproductive, useless. 3. (figuratively, archaic) Of a person: unable to have children; barren, infertile. 4. (rare) Of a diet, etc.: without fruit. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fruitless> ___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:   All of us, no matter from what land our parents came, no matter in what way we may severally worship our Creator, must stand shoulder to shoulder in a united America for the elimination of race and religious prejudice. We must stand for a reign of equal justice to both big and small.   --Theodore Roosevelt <https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt>