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Voalavo is a genus of rodent in the subfamily Nesomyinae, found only in Madagascar. Two species are known, both of which live in mountain forest above 1250 m (4100 ft) altitude; V. gymnocaudus lives in northern Madagascar and V. antsahabensis is restricted to a small area in the central part of the island. The genus was discovered in 1994 and formally described in 1998. Within Nesomyinae, it is most closely related to the genus Eliurus, and DNA sequence data suggest that the current definitions of these two genera need to be changed. Species of Voalavo are small, gray, mouse-like rodents, among the smallest nesomyines. They lack the distinctive tuft of long hairs on the tail that is characteristic of Eliurus. The tail is long and females have six mammae. In Voalavo, there are two glands on the chest (absent in Eliurus) that produce a sweet-smelling musk in breeding males. In the skull, the facial skeleton is long and the braincase is smooth. The molars are somewhat high-crowned, though less so than in Eliurus, and the third molars are reduced in size and complexity. (Full article...)

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Mihran Kassabian's hands (1909)

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In the news

Summer Olympics closing ceremony

A magnitude 6.2 earthquake hits central Italy, killing at least 37 people.
The Summer Olympics conclude (ceremony pictured) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
At least 54 people are killed when a wedding is attacked by a suicide bomber in Gaziantep, southern Turkey.
The Airlander 10 hybrid airship – the largest aircraft flying today – completes its maiden civilian voyage.
A wildfire in the U.S. state of California displaces more than 82,000 residents, burns more than 30,000 acres (120 sq. km) and threatens at least 34,500 structures.

On this day...

August 24: Independence Day in Ukraine (1991)

The White House after having been burned

AD 79 – According to estimates based on the Codex Laurentianus Mediceus, Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying the Italian towns of Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae in rock and ash.
1814 – War of 1812: British forces invaded Washington, D.C., setting fire to various US government buildings, including what is now the White House (damage pictured).
1914 – World War I: The Battle of Cer ended as the first Allied victory in the war.
1941 – Adolf Hitler ordered the official termination of the T4 euthanasia program of the mentally ill and disabled, although killings continued in secret for the remainder of the war.
2006 – The International Astronomical Union redefined the term "planet", reclassifying Pluto as a dwarf planet since it has not "cleared the neighbourhood" around its orbit.

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Today's featured picture

William I (1772–1843) was a Prince of Orange and the first King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg. William implemented controversial language policies, founded many trade institutions and universities, and adopted a new constitution. However, the southern Netherlands became increasingly marginalized, and in 1830 the Belgian Revolution broke out. The war against the newly-declared Belgium caused considerable economic distress for the Netherlands, and in 1839 William signed the Treaty of London, which recognized Belgium and dissolved the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. William abdicated the following year.

Painting: Joseph Paelinck

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