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From today's featured article
The horned sungem (Heliactin bilophus) is a species of hummingbird native to Brazil, Bolivia and Suriname. It prefers open habitats such as savanna, grassland and garden, and expanded its range into southern Amazonas and Espírito Santo, probably due to deforestation. It is a small hummingbird with a long tail and a short, black bill. The sexes differ in appearance, with males having two shiny red, golden, and green feather "horns" above the eyes, a shiny blue head crest and a black throat with a pointed "beard". The female is plainer, with a brown or yellow–buff throat. It is a nomadic species, responding to the seasonal flowering of its food plants. If a flower's shape is unsuited to the bird's short bill, it may rob nectar through a hole at its base. It also eats small insects. Only the female builds the small cup nest, incubates the two white eggs, and rears the chicks. The species is currently classified as least concern, and its population is thought to be increasing. (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that Li Zhaoxing (pictured), a former Chinese minister of foreign affairs, has published more than 200 poems and was known as a "poet minister"?
- ... that at least one person on every NFL All-Decade Team has played for the Green Bay Packers, although one of those players was only with the Packers for one season?
- ... that the 2024 opening of regular sessions of the National Congress of Argentina took place at 21:00 instead of 12:00?
- ... that Ground Round attempted to diversify its meat-heavy menu with such dishes as swordfish and Mexican pizza?
- ... that Final Fantasy's "first great villain" has been compared to characters like the Green Goblin and the Joker?
- ... that singer Frank Croxton performed a duet with his father for the unveiling of a monument to a Confederate States Army general?
- ... that even though about 100,000 bombs fell on Le Touquet during World War II, making it "the most mined city in France", it was the first resort in northern France to open its beaches after its liberation?
- ... that Thomas Figures prosecuted two members of the Ku Klux Klan for murder, and Michael Figures bankrupted their organization in a civil lawsuit?
- ... that ancient humans cared for a 14,000-year-old puppy?
In the news
- Flooding (pictured) in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, leaves more than 100 people dead and at least 130 others missing.
- Kyren Wilson wins the World Snooker Championship.
- In horse racing, Mystik Dan wins the Kentucky Derby.
- Following the Solomon Islands general election, Jeremiah Manele becomes the prime minister.
- Acting prime minister of Haiti Ariel Henry resigns, and the Transitional Presidential Council is sworn in.
On this day
May 9: Europe Day in the European Union; Liberation Day in the Channel Islands (1945)
- 1877 – An earthquake struck northern Chile, leading to the deaths of 2,385 people, mostly victims of the ensuing tsunami, as far away as Hawaii and Fiji.
- 1944 – World War II: The Japanese Take Ichi convoy arrived at Halmahera in the Dutch East Indies after losing many ships and thousands of troops to Allied attacks while attempting to carry two divisions of troops from China to New Guinea.
- 1977 – The Hotel Polen in Amsterdam was destroyed by fire (pictured), leaving 33 people dead.
- 1980 – Part of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Florida collapsed after a pier was struck by the MV Summit Venture, killing 35 people.
- 2001 – Police at the Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra, Ghana, fired tear gas to quell unrest at a football match, leading to a stampede that killed 126 people.
- Al-Adid (b. 1151)
- John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair (d. 1747)
- Yukiya Amano (b. 1947)
Today's featured picture
The acorn woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) is a bird in the woodpecker family, Picidae. It is found across Central America, as well as the western United States and parts of Colombia. A medium-sized bird, it has a length of around 20 cm and is mostly black, and adult males have a red cap starting at the forehead and females a black area between the forehead and the cap. As their name implies, acorn woodpeckers are heavily dependent on acorns for food, which they store in small holes that they drill into trees, known as "granaries" or "storage trees". This acorn woodpecker was photographed in the grounds of California State University, Chico, United States. Photograph credit: Frank Schulenburg
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