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Nyctibatrachus major, the Malabar night frog, is a species in the robust frog family. First described in 1882 by George Albert Boulenger, it is a large Nyctibatrachus frog, with an adult snout–vent length of 31.5–52.0 mm (1.24–2.05 in) for males and 43.7–54.2 mm (1.72–2.13 in) for females. It is mainly brownish to greyish in colour, with a greyish-white underside, light grey sides, and grey or brown markings. Sexes can be told apart by the bulbous glands near the inner thigh in males. The species is endemic to the Western Ghats mountain range of India, in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. Adults are nocturnal and inhabit fast-moving forest streams at elevations of up to 900 m (3,000 ft). The diet mainly consists of other frogs and insect larvae. On hatching, tadpoles drop from leaves or rocks into a water source. The species is vulnerable: threats include habitat loss, increased human presence, and possibly nitrate pollution caused by fertiliser overuse. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

In the Snow at Tsukahara, Sado Island

... that Monet decorated his house at Giverny with Kuniyoshi's In the Snow at Tsukahara, Sado Island (pictured), one of about 231 Japanese prints in Monet's personal collection?
... that LaVonne Griffin-Valade, the Oregon Secretary of State, has published four crime fiction novels?
... that Laverstock ware pottery was produced to supply the royal palace at Clarendon, but was also used all over the south of England?
... that geographer Richard Urquhart Goode is the namesake of three mountains and a glacier?
... that the Indian politician Diwan Chaman Lall failed to get rid of the painting Nude of Indira?
... that the musician Salute has an inclusion rider on their contracts for live performances?
... that the success of the book Fifth Chinese Daughter led to the U.S. State Department translating the book into various Asian languages and sending its author on a speaking tour across Asia?
... that a teacher of medieval literature and comic books writes the blog Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle?

In the news

Azali Assoumani

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's SLIM lunar module lands on the Moon.
Iran launches missile strikes in Pakistan and aerial strikes in Iraq and Syria, and Pakistan responds with retaliatory airstrikes.
Azali Assoumani (pictured) is re-elected President of the Comoros.
Bernardo Arévalo is inaugurated as President of Guatemala after multiple attempts to obstruct the event.

On this day

January 23

A Frisbee brand flying disc

1264 – King Louis IX of France issued the Mise of Amiens, a settlement between King Henry III of England and barons led by Simon de Montfort heavily favouring the former, which later led to the Second Barons' War.
1789 – Bishop John Carroll purchased a plot of land that would become the home of the future Georgetown University, the oldest Catholic university in the United States.
1902 – In the most fatal recorded mountaineering accident, 199 of the 210 members of an Imperial Japanese Army unit perished in a blizzard on the Hakkōda Mountains.
1957 – American inventor Fred Morrison sold the rights to his "flying disc" to the Wham-O toy company, who later renamed it the "Frisbee" (example pictured).
2001 – Five people attempted to set themselves on fire in Tiananmen Square, Beijing, an act that many later claimed to have been staged by the Chinese Communist Party to frame Falun Gong and thus escalate their persecution.

Hai Rui (b. 1514)
Tom Denning (b. 1899)
Marguerite Gautier-van Berchem (d. 1984)
Salvador Dalí (d. 1989)

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Today's featured picture

Junonia orithya, commonly known as the blue pansy or the blue argus, is a nymphalid butterfly with many subspecies occurring from Africa, through southern and south-eastern Asia, and Australia. Both males and females have predominantly velvety black, blue, orange and white colouring, with females being slightly larger than males and with more clearly defined ocelli and markings. This male J. orithya butterfly was photographed in Periyar National Park in Kerala, India.

Photograph credit: Jeevan Jose

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