Wikipedia:Main Page history/2015 February 1

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

Przevalski's nuthatch (Sitta przewalskii) is a bird species in the family Sittidae. Long regarded as a subspecies of the white-cheeked nuthatch (Sitta leucopsis), it nevertheless differs significantly in morphology and vocalizations. It is a medium-sized nuthatch, measuring about 13 cm (5.1 in) in length. Its upper body is a dark gray-blue. The cheeks and throat are a white buff-orange, turning to a rich cinnamon on the underparts. The bird is endemic to areas in southeastern Tibet and west central China, inhabiting coniferous mountain forests. The species was first described in 1891 from a specimen collected in China's Haidong Prefecture. The name commemorates the Russian explorer Nikolaï Prjevalski, who discovered the species in 1884. Little is known about its ecology. It was awarded the rank of full species in 2005, separating it from the white-cheeked nuthatch. As of 2014, S. przewalskii does not have a full threat-status evaluation by BirdLife International or the IUCN. A 2014 phylogenetic study found the species to be at the base of the nuthatch evolutionary tree, dispelling a hypothesis that S. przewalskii could belong to the same species as S. carolinensis. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Lambertia formosa – Battle of Öland – Lanny McDonald

Archive – By email – More featured articles...

Did you know...

From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:

... that Shortia galacifolia (pictured) was rediscovered nearly 100 years after its first sighting?
... that the god Vishnu's mace represents his wife?
... that Grabaciones Accidentales, established in 1981, was one of Spain's first independent record labels?
... that William Egon of Fürstenberg was a Prince in the Holy Roman Empire, and making 90,000 livres a year as a French agent, when he was arrested for treason?
... that a man shot two New York City police officers to death, ostensibly in revenge for the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown, and then committed suicide?
... that in Somerset's 1882 cricket match against Lancashire, the stumps had to be moved, because the pitch was "a puddle"?
... that the Belleville and North Hastings Railway didn't reach either Belleville or North Hastings?

Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news

Syriza (Coalition of the Radical Left) wins a plurality of seats in the Greek legislative election and forms a coalition government with the Independent Greeks.
The Bangsamoro peace process is halted following clashes during a Philippine National Police raid.
Edgar Lungu of the Patriotic Front party is elected President of Zambia.
Sumo wrestler Hakuhō Shō (pictured) wins a record-breaking 33rd makuuchi championship.
Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah dies and is succeeded by his half brother, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, Prime Minister Khaled Bahah, and the Yemeni cabinet resign after a coup d'état in Yemen by Shia insurgents.

Ongoing: Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – War in Ukraine
Recent deaths: Rod McKuen – Colleen McCullough – Charles H. Townes

On this day...

February 1: Feast day of St. Brigit of Kildare (Western Christianity); Black History Month begins in Canada and the United States; LGBT History Month begins in the United Kingdom

1329 – The Teutonic Knights succeeded in their siege of a fortress in Samogitia, Lithuania, and baptized the defenders in the Catholic rite.
1790 – The Supreme Court of the United States (modern buliding pictured), the highest judicial body in the US and the head of the judicial branch of the federal government, first convened at the Merchants' Exchange Building in New York City.
1884 – The first fascicle of the Oxford English Dictionary, a 352-page volume that covered words from A to Ant, was published.
1968 – The Government of Canada merged the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and the Royal Canadian Air Force into a unified structure, the Canadian Armed Forces.
1985 – Aeroflot Flight 7841 crashed shortly after takeoff from Minsk National Airport, killing fifty-eight people on board.

More anniversaries: January 31 – February 1 – February 2

Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries

It is now February 1, 2015 (UTC) – Reload this page

Today's featured picture

Ida B. Wells (1862–1931) was an African-American journalist, newspaper editor, suffragist, sociologist, and an early leader in the civil rights movement. Born into slavery in Holly Springs, Mississippi, Wells and her family were freed by the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863. Despite losing her parents to yellow fever when she was sixteen, Wells attended Fisk University and became a teacher. Politically active since her youth, she also became a writer on race issues and campaigned against lynching; in this latter capacity she published two influential pamphlets and traveled throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. Wells also helped establish the National Association of Colored Women and the National Afro-American Council.

Photograph: Mary Garrity; restoration: Adam Cuerden

Recently featured: Chinese pond heron – Charles Baudelaire – Albers projection

Archive – More featured pictures...

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.