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Mountain pigeons are four species of birds in the genus Gymnophaps in the pigeon family Columbidae. They are found on islands in eastern Indonesia and Melanesia, where they inhabit hill and montane forest. Medium-sized pigeons with long tails and wings, they are 33 to 38.5 cm (13.0 to 15.2 in) long and weigh 259 to 385 g (9.1 to 13.6 oz). They mostly have dull grey, white, or chestnut-brown plumage, their most distinctive feature being bright red skin around the eyes. Males and females mostly look alike, but the Papuan and pale mountain pigeons show slight sexual dimorphism. They are social and are usually seen in flocks of 10 to 40 birds, although some species can form flocks of more than 100. The genus was originally described by the Italian zoologist Tommaso Salvadori in 1874 and currently contains the Papuan, Seram, Buru, and pale mountain pigeons. Mountain pigeons inhabit trees and feed on a wide variety of fruit. All four species are listed as being of least concern on the IUCN Red List. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Grapefruit

... that the grapefruit (examples pictured) was described as the "forbidden fruit" in 1750?
... that British war correspondent Ian Fyfe was killed on D-Day while landing in a glider with troops attacking the Merville Gun Battery?
... that the 1976 Philippine film Itim was described as "one of the most remarkable debuts in cinema history" in a 2022 retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art?
... that Phoebe Plummer was "unfortunate" to draw Christopher Hehir as judge when they stood trial over the Just Stop Oil Sunflowers protest?
... that the only death from the Belvidere Apollo Theatre collapse was the one audience member who bought a concert t-shirt from Crypta that night, according to their lead singer?
... that the cover art of Music from the Merch Desk (2016–2023) was derived from bootleg merchandise?
... that Michael O'Kane never received approval to begin constructing a building for the College of the Holy Cross?
... that in the 1980s, when Moturoa Island lost all its endangered kiwi to pests, experts reintroduced seven birds – today there could be as many as 300 kiwi on the island?
... that Jill, Duchess of Hamilton, donated her body to science because "funerals are a bore"?

In the news

Jimmy Carter

Former president of the United States Jimmy Carter (pictured) dies at the age of 100.
Jeju Air Flight 2216 crashes at Muan International Airport, South Korea, killing 179 people.
Acting president and prime minister of South Korea Han Duck-soo is impeached by the National Assembly.
Former prime minister of India Manmohan Singh dies at the age of 92.

On this day

December 30: Rizal Day in the Philippines (1896)

Pro-government rally in Tehran, Iran

999 – In Ireland, the combined forces of Munster and Meath crushed a rebellion by Leinster and Dublin.
1940 – The Arroyo Seco Parkway, one of the first freeways built in the U.S., connecting downtown Los Angeles with Pasadena, California, was officially dedicated.
1954 – The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation was established to consolidate criminal investigation and intelligence into a single agency.
1969 – Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos began his second term after being re-elected in a landslide.
2006 – Saddam Hussein, the former president of Iraq, was executed after being found guilty of crimes against humanity by the Iraqi High Tribunal.
2009 – Pro-government counter-demonstrators held rallies (pictured) in several Iranian cities in response to recent anti-government protests on the holy day of Ashura.

Bernard Gui (d. 1331)
LeBron James (b. 1984)
V (b. 1995)
Erica Garner (d. 2017)

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From today's featured list

Ryan Giggs

Since 1993, 636 medals have been awarded to 305 players in the Premier League, an association football league that serves as the top tier of the English football league system. Since the 2012–13 season, a player needs to have played in a minimum of five matches for a title-winning team to qualify for a medal; this is down from the previous threshold of ten matches played. As of the end of the 2023–24 season, seven clubs have won the Premier League title at least once – Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Leicester City and Liverpool. Ten players have won the title with more than one club. Having won 13 Premier League championships, Manchester United have more title-winning players to their name than any other club, with 86 players awarded 247 medals. Ryan Giggs (pictured), who spent his entire career at the club, has won more medals than any other player, with 13. (Full list...)

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Bathymetry is the study of the underwater depth of sea and ocean floors, lake floors, and river floors. It has been carried out for more than 3,000 years, with the first recorded evidence of measurements of water depth occurring in ancient Egypt. Bathymetric measurements are conducted with various methods, including depth sounding, sonar and lidar techniques, buoys, and satellite altimetry. However, despite modern computer-based research, the depth of the seabed of Earth remains less well measured in many locations than the topography of Mars. Bathymetry has various uses, including the production of bathymetric charts to guide vessels and identify underwater hazards, the study of marine life near the bottom of bodies of water, coastline analysis, and ocean dynamics, including predicting currents and tides. This video, created by the Scientific Visualization Studio at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, simulates the effect on a satellite world map of a gradual decrease in worldwide sea levels. As the sea level drops, more seabed is exposed in shades of brown, producing a bathymetric map of the world. Continental shelves appear mostly by a depth of 140 meters (460 ft), mid-ocean ridges by 3,000 meters (9,800 ft), and oceanic trenches at depths beyond 6,000 meters (20,000 ft). The video ends at a depth of 10,190 meters (33,430 ft) below sea level – the approximate depth of the Challenger Deep, the deepest known point of the seabed.

Video credit: NASA / Goddard Space Flight Center / Horace Mitchell, and James O'Donoghue

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