Wikipedia:Main Page history/2021 February 3b

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From today's featured article

The bee-eaters are near passerine birds of the family Meropidae, containing three genera and twenty-seven species. Most species are found in Africa and Asia, with a few in southern Europe, Australia, and New Guinea. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage and slender bodies, and usually by elongated central tail feathers. All have long down-turned bills and medium to long wings, which may be pointed or round. They predominantly eat flying insects, caught on the wing from an open perch. Most bee-eaters are gregarious, forming colonies and nesting in burrows. The eggs are white, with typically five to the clutch. Most species are monogamous, and both parents care for the young, sometimes with assistance from related birds in the colony. Bee-eaters may be killed by raptors; their nests are raided by rodents and snakes, and they can carry various parasites. Some species are adversely affected by human activity or habitat loss, but none are threatened. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Schloss Freudenberg

... that Schloss Freudenberg (pictured) and its park in Wiesbaden-Dotzheim offer an exhibition for the senses, with a Dunkelbar for drinking in darkness?
... that when New York City's Harlem Ship Canal Bridge had to be replaced, it was floated down the river to become the University Heights Bridge?
... that Anna Utenhoven, who was buried alive in 1597, was the last person executed for heresy in the Low Countries?
... that after NBCUniversal shut down KMAS-TV in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, its chief engineer suggested it be donated to his former employer, Rocky Mountain PBS?
... that the English and French agreed to a draft treaty in 1354 to end what was to become the Hundred Years' War, but the French reneged and the war continued for a further 101 years?
... that Wahsayah Whitebird's Communist Party membership was not publicly known until after he was elected?
... that Valentina, with her song "J'imagine", brought France its first victory at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest?
... that Elsa Schiaparelli prevented Salvador Dalí from adding mayonnaise to her lobster dress?

In the news

Aung San Suu Kyi

Aung San Suu Kyi (pictured), the State Counsellor of Myanmar, is detained by the military in a coup d'état.
A coordinated short squeeze targeting American hedge funds causes GameStop's stock price to spike.
Kaja Kallas becomes the first female Prime Minister of Estonia, following the resignation of Jüri Ratas.
In Russia, protests against the arrest of Alexei Navalny occur in more than 120 towns and cities.

On this day

February 3: Feast day of Saint Laurence of Canterbury (Western Christianity); Mother's Day in Iran (2021); Four Chaplains' Day in the United States (1943)

Steve Jobs

1266 – Mudéjar revolt: James I of Aragon entered the Muslim-held city of Murcia, conquered following its surrender three days earlier.
1781 – Fourth Anglo-Dutch War: British forces captured the Dutch island of Sint Eustatius after a brief skirmish.
1986 – Steve Jobs (pictured) purchased Pixar from Lucasfilm and launched it as an independent computer-animation studio.
2014 – Russia's first school shooting took place when a student opened fire at School No. 263 in Moscow, resulting in the deaths of a teacher and a police officer.

Scipione Rebiba (b. 1504)
Isaac Baker Brown (d. 1873)
Dolly Rudeman (b. 1902)

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Today's featured picture

Robert Earl Jones (February 3, 1910 – September 7, 2006) was an American actor and a prizefighter. He was a sparring partner of Joe Louis, and was introduced to the stage by Langston Hughes early in his career, becoming one of the first prominent black film stars. The father of James Earl Jones, he had separated from his wife before the child was born, and did not get to meet his son until twenty years later.

Photography credit: Carl Van Vechten; restored by Adam Cuerden

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