The smooth toadfish (Tetractenos glaber) is a species in the pufferfish
family Tetraodontidae. It is native to shallow coastal and estuarine
waters of southeastern Australia, where it is widespread and abundant.
French naturalist Christophe-Paulin de La Poix de Fréminville described
the species in 1813, though early records confused it with what is now
the only other member of its genus, the common toadfish (T. hamiltoni).
Up to .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac
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sition:absolute;width:1px}16 cm (6+1⁄4 in) long with distinctive
leopard-like dark markings on its upperparts, the smooth toadfish has a
flattened belly and an elongate body tapering to a slender tail. Its
back and fins are rounded. Unlike most of its relatives, it does not
have prominent spines on its body. Like other pufferfish, it can inflate
itself with water or air. It forages for its preferred foods—molluscs
and crustaceans—in sandy or muddy sediment. The smooth toadfish's
flesh contains the poison tetrodotoxin, and eating it can be fatal.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smooth_toadfish>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1776:
American Revolutionary War: As George Washington's Continental
Army retreated northward from New York City, the British Army captured
the village of White Plains.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_White_Plains>
1928:
Indonesian composer Wage Rudolf Supratman introduced "Indonesia
Raya", now the country's national anthem.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesia_Raya>
1971:
Prospero (flight spare pictured), the first British satellite
launched on a British rocket, lifted off from Launch Area 5B in
Woomera, South Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prospero_%28spacecraft%29>
2013:
The first terrorist attack in Beijing's recent history took
place when members of the Turkistan Islamic Party drove a vehicle into a
crowd, killing five people and injuring thirty-eight others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Tiananmen_Square_attack>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
Panathenaea:
(Ancient Greece, historical) A festival formerly held annually in Athens
to honour the city's patron goddess Athena, involving animal sacrifices,
a grand procession, and, every fourth year, athletic and musical
contests.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Panathenaea>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Some people are constructive … Others are destructive. It's
this diversity in humankind that results in some making positive
contributions and some negative contributions. It's necessary to have
enough who make positive contributions to overcome the problems of each
age.
--Jonas Salk
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jonas_Salk>
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