The great cuckoo-dove (Reinwardtoena reinwardti) is a species of bird in the pigeon family. First described by zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck in 1824, it is found on islands from New Guinea to Wallacea in primary forest and the forest edge. It is a large pigeon, and in adults the head, neck, and breast are whitish or blue-grey, the underparts are bluish-grey, the upperparts are chestnut-brown, and the outer wings are black. Females differ from males in having yellower irises and duller orbital skin. Juveniles are mainly dull grey-brown, with dirty-white throats and bellies. The bird feeds on fruit and seeds, usually alone or in pairs, but forms mixed flocks at fruit trees. It will defend fruiting shrubs, an uncommon foraging behaviour among birds. Breeding occurs throughout the year, although timing varies over its range. Nests are platforms made of plant material and the clutch is one white egg. This species is classified as least concern due to its large range and stable population. (Full article...)
Pisaura mirabilis is a species of arachnid in the family Pisauridae, the nursery web spiders. It has a palearctic distribution, being found all over Europe, and also inhabits the Canary Islands and Madeira, the Asian part of Russia, China and North Africa. It lives in all habitats but prefers wet environments, and inhabits all strata from the ground to the top of trees, at altitudes up to 1,100 metres (3,600 feet), but is not found under rocks or in caves. The spider has relatively long legs, the fourth pair being the longest, and a slender opisthosoma. Males are 10 to 13 millimetres (0.39 to 0.51 in) in length, while females are 12 to 15 millimetres (0.47 to 0.59 in). This photograph shows a female P. mirabilis spider carrying an egg sac, photographed at a lake near Wolvercote in Oxfordshire, England.
... that ten years after publishing the book Great South African Christians, Horton Davies gave a speech criticizing South African churches and synagogues for their role in apartheid?
... that the two varieties of Alabama croton are separated by more than 1,000 kilometres (620 miles)?
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