Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 December 25

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Today's featured article
The Red-capped Robin is a small passerine bird native to Australia. Found in dryer regions across much of the continent, it inhabits scrub and open woodland. Like many brightly coloured robins of the Petroicidae family, it is sexually dimorphic. Measuring 10.5–12.5 cm (4–5 in) in length, the robin has a small thin black bill, and dark brown eyes and legs. The male has a distinctive red cap and red breast, black upperparts, and a black tail with white tips. The underparts and shoulders are white. The female is an undistinguished grey-brown. This species uses a variety of songs, and males generally sing to advertise territories and attract females. Birds are encountered in pairs or small groups, but the social behaviour has been little studied. The position of the Red-capped Robin and its Australian relatives on the passerine family tree is unclear; the Petroicidae are not closely related to either the European or American Robins but appear to be an early offshoot of the Passerida group of songbirds. The Red-capped Robin is a predominantly ground-feeding bird and its prey consists of insects and spiders. Although widespread, it is uncommon in much of its range and has receded in some areas from human activity. (more...) Recently featured: Harold Pinter – Lavanify – Issy Smith Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that Joseph Farquharson's 1901 painting Beneath the Snow Encumbered Branches (pictured) is a popular choice for Christmas cards? ... that Cliff at Christmas was the only album released during Cliff Richard's second period with music label EMI, to whom he'd previously been signed for over forty years? ... that Gemiler Island, off the coast of Turkey, may have been the location of Saint Nicholas' original tomb? ... that sculptor Alexander Finta, who worked for 20th Century Fox, studied with Auguste Rodin? ... that the 1989 Ungava earthquake was the first earthquake in eastern North America known to be associated with ground rupture? ... that a 1640 Act of the Parliament of Scotland abolished the observation of Christmas in Scotland? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Twin suicide bombings kill at least 40 people in Damascus, Syria. A series of coordinated bombings in Baghdad kills at least 63 people. Soyuz TMA-03M, launched from Baikonur, carries a crew of three men (pictured) to the International Space Station. Russia's largest stock exchanges, MICEX and RTS, merge to form MICEX-RTS. North Korea announces the death of Supreme Leader Kim Jong-il. Czech writer and first President of the Czech Republic Václav Havel dies at the age of 75. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
December 25: Christmas Day (worldwide); Quaid-e-Azam Day (Pakistan) 1776 – American Revolutionary War: George Washington and his army crossed the Delaware River to launch a surprise attack on Hessian mercenaries at the Battle of Trenton. 1941 – Second World War: The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began after Mark Aitchison Young, the Governor of Hong Kong, surrendered the territory to Japan after 18 days of fierce fighting. 1950 – The Stone of Scone, the traditional coronation stone of Scottish, English, and more recently British monarchs, was stolen from London's Westminster Abbey. 2007 – A tiger at the San Francisco Zoo escaped from its enclosure and attacked three patrons before it was shot and killed. 2009 – The 19th-century St Mel's Cathedral (pictured) in Longford, considered the "flagship cathedral" of the Irish midlands, was destroyed by fire. More anniversaries: December 24 – December 25 – December 26 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now December 25, 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The peaks of the Central Massif overlook the village of Sotres in Cabrales, located in the Picos de Europa, a mountain range in northern Spain forming part of the Cantabrian Mountains. The name (literally: "Peaks of Europe") is believed to derive from being the first European landforms visible to mariners arriving from the Americas.

Photo: Mick Stephenson

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