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Thegiant anteater is a largeinsectivorous mammal native to Central and South America. It is one of four living species ofanteater and is classified withsloths in the orderPilosa. This species is mostly terrestrial, in contrast to other living anteaters, which arearboreal or semi-arboreal. It is the largest of its family, stretching 182–217 cm (5.97–7.12 ft) and weighing 33–41 kg (73–90 lb) for males and 27–39 kg (60–86 lb) for females. It is recognizable by its elongated snout, bushy tail, long foreclaws and distinctively coloredpelage. The anteater's habitats includegrassland andrainforest and it feeds primarily onants andtermites, using its foreclaws to dig them up and its long, sticky tongue to collect them. The giant anteater is listed asvulnerable by theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature. Threats to its survival include habitat destruction and hunting. The anteater has been featured inpre-Columbian myths and folktales, and modern popular culture. (Full article...)

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Eurasian beaver with her kit

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On this day

April 5:Feast day ofSaint Vincent Ferrer (Catholicism)

Pocahontas

919 – TheFatimid Caliphate begana second unsuccessful invasion of Egypt, then underAbbasid rule.
1614 –Pocahontas(pictured), aNative American woman, married English colonistJohn Rolfe, leading to a period of peace between thePowhatan people and the inhabitants ofJamestown, Virginia.
1944 – Siegfried Lederer, aCzech Jew,escaped from Auschwitz with the aid of anSS officer who opposedthe Holocaust.
1986 – The Libyan secret servicebombed a discotheque inWest Berlin, resulting in three deaths and 229 others injured.
2009 – The North Korean satelliteKwangmyŏngsŏng-2 was launched from theTonghae Satellite Launching Ground and passed over Japan, sparking concerns it may have been a trial run of technology that could be used to launchintercontinental ballistic missiles.

al-Nuwayri (b. 1279)
Thure de Thulstrup (b. 1848)
Marie-Rosalie Cadron-Jetté (d. 1864)
Judith Resnik (b. 1949)

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Nadar (born Gaspard-Félix Tournachon; 5 April 1820 – 20 March 1910) was a French photographer,caricaturist, journalist, novelist,balloonist, and proponent ofheavier-than-air flight. In 1858, he became the first person to takeaerial photographs, and during theSiege of Paris in 1870–71, he established the firstairmail service. In 1863, Nadar commissioned the prominent balloonistEugène Godard to construct an enormous balloon, 60 metres (196 ft) high and with a capacity of 6,000 m³ (210,000 cu ft), namedLe Géant (The Giant). For publicity, he recreated balloon flights in his studio with his wife, Ernestine, using a rigged-up balloon gondola. This self-portrait of Nadar in a balloon basket was takenc. 1863.

Photograph credit:Nadar; restored byAdam Cuerden

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