[Daily article] September 3: Cactus wren

The cactus wren (Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus) is a large wren that
is endemic to the deserts of the US and Mexico. It is the state bird of
Arizona. The wren's upperparts are brown with black and white spots and
the underparts are cinnamon-buff with a whiter breast; it has striking
white eyebrows. The song is loud and raspy. Cactus wrens are ground
feeders and eat mainly insects, with some plant material; they can meet
their water needs from their diet. The wrens use saguaro and cholla
cacti as nesting sites, which provide protection for their large bulky
nests and their young. The wrens are non-migratory and territorial
around their nests. Pairs are monogamous; males build nests, females
incubate eggs, and both parents feed chicks. Populations have declined
due to human activities, habitat loss and introduced species including
cats, but the wrens still number in the millions. The species is classed
as being of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of
Nature.

Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cactus_wren>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1777:

American Revolutionary War: The British Army and their Hessian
allies defeated an American militia at the Battle of Cooch's Bridge.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cooch%27s_Bridge>

1901:

The flag of Australia flew for the first time from the Royal
Exhibition Building in Melbourne.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Australia>

1935:

On the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, British racing motorist
Malcolm Campbell became the first person to drive an automobile over
300 mph (480 km/h).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Campbell>

2004:

Russian security forces stormed a school in Beslan, North
Ossetia, ending a three-day hostage crisis in which 334 of more than
1,100 hostages were killed (photographs of victims pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beslan_school_siege>

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Wiktionary's word of the day:

bosk:
1. (obsolete except dialectal) A bush.
2. (archaic) A thicket; a small wood.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bosk>

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Wikiquote quote of the day:

  True art, springing fresh from Nature, must have in it, to live,
much of the glance of an eye, much of the sound of a voice, much of the
life of a life.  
--Louis Sullivan
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Louis_Sullivan>

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