Wikipedia:Main Page history/2016 February 25

The African river martin (Pseudochelidon eurystomina) is a perching bird, one of two members of the river martin subfamily of the swallow family, Hirundinidae. First described by German zoologist Gustav Hartlaub in 1861, the African river martin was not at first recognised as a swallow, but was later placed in a separate subfamily shared with the Asian white-eyed river martin. A large swallow with a variety of unmusical calls, it is mainly black with a blue-green gloss to the head and a greener tint to the back and wings, and has red eyes, a broad orange-red bill and a square black tail. Young birds are similar in appearance, but with browner plumage. It displays both in flight and on the ground. The main breeding areas are in the Democratic Republic of the Congo along the Congo River and its tributary, the Ubangi, in habitats characterised by a mixture of tropical forest types including swampy or seasonally flooded woodland. The African river martin is migratory, wintering in coastal savanna in southern Gabon and the Republic of the Congo. It nests in burrows in sand banks, and in winter digs tunnels for night-time shelter. (Full article...)

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February 25: Soviet Occupation Day in Georgia (1921); National Day in Kuwait (1961)

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The jaw of a shortfin mako shark. Cartilaginous fishes such as sharks and rays have one set of oral jaws made mainly of cartilage; unlike bony fishes, they do not have pharyngeal jaws. Generally fish jaws are articulated and oppose vertically, comprising an upper and lower jaw. Cartilaginous fishes grow multiple sets of ordered teeth, replacing them as they wear.

Photograph: Didier Descouens

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