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The red-capped parrot (Purpureicephalus spurius) is a species of broad-tailed parrot native to southwest Western Australia. Described by Heinrich Kuhl in 1820, it is classified in its own genus owing to its distinctive elongated beak. Its closest relative is the mulga parrot. It is not easily confused with other parrot species; both adult sexes have a bright crimson crown, green-yellow cheeks, and a distinctive long bill. The wings, back, and long tail are dark green, and the underparts are purple-blue. Found in woodland and open savanna country, the red-capped parrot consumes seeds (particularly of eucalypts), flowers, berries, and occasionally insects. Nesting takes place in tree hollows. Although the red-capped parrot has been shot as a pest, and affected by land clearing, the population is growing and the species is not threatened. In captivity, it has a reputation of being both anxious and difficult to breed. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Holly-Anne Hull of Remember Monday

... that Elizabeth II once asked a future member (pictured) of the "What the Hell Just Happened?" girlband Remember Monday why she was not wearing shoes?
... that John P. Metras held all-night recruitment parties including a bathtub full of ice and beer?
... that Priamurye Governorate-General, a Russian colony in East Asia, issued passports in order to segregate East Asian migrants from the general population?
... that Meng Sufen led a 1993 investigation in Guizhou's Mashan region, sparking a donation campaign raising over 1.6 million yuan for poverty alleviation?
... that Britart and the Turner Prize are both lampooned in the Jilly Cooper romance novel Pandora?
... that the larvae of the elm zigzag sawfly create distinctive zig-zags in the leaves of elm trees?
... that while attempting to "bulk up" for the Olympics, judoka Vlado Paradžik lost 11 pounds (5.0 kg) due to food shortages?
... that the developers of UTM needed to make a "slow edition" of their software to get it approved on the App Store?
... that NFL player Miles Turpin wrestled alligators when young, calling it "a lot of fun"?

In the news

Luís Montenegro

In the Portuguese legislative election, the Democratic Alliance (leader Luís Montenegro pictured) wins the most seats in parliament.
Austria, represented by JJ with the song "Wasted Love", wins the Eurovision Song Contest.
Former president of Uruguay José Mujica dies at the age of 89.
The Socialist Party led by current prime minister Edi Rama wins an outright majority in the Albanian parliamentary election.

On this day

May 21: World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

Busoni c. 1897

1138 – The Crusades: The siege of Shaizar ended, and the Emir of Shaizar became a vassal of the Byzantine Empire.
1864 – American Civil War: The inconclusive Battle of Spotsylvania Court House in Virginia ended with combined Union and Confederate casualties totaling around 31,000.
1894 – The Manchester Ship Canal, linking Manchester in North West England to the Irish Sea, officially opened, becoming the world's largest navigation canal at the time.
1925 – The opera Doktor Faust, unfinished when composer Ferruccio Busoni (pictured) died, was premiered in Dresden.
2014 – A Taiwanese man carried out a stabbing spree on a Taipei Metro train, killing four people and injuring 24 others.

Feng Dao (d. 954)
Tommaso Campanella (d. 1639)
Armand Hammer (b. 1898)
Linda Laubenstein (b. 1947)

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Today's featured picture

The black-crowned barwing (Actinodura sodangorum) is a non-migratory bird from Mainland Southeast Asia in the family Leiothrichidae, the laughingthrushes. The species's first sighting was reported in April 1996 at Ngọc Linh, Vietnam, and it was formally described in 1999. The black-crowned barwing is the only bird in the genus Actinodura to have a black crown. It has transverse barring on the wings (wingbars) and a crest, which are characteristic of the genus. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, high-altitude shrubland, high-altitude grassland, and plantations. This black-crowned barwing was photographed in the Ngọc Linh Nature Reserve, Vietnam.

Photograph credit: JJ Harrison

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