document_title: Common wood pigeon

question_text: how many babies does a wood pigeon have

question_tokens: how many babies does a wood pigeon have

root

text: Common wood pigeon

text: Distribution and habitat[edit]

text: In the colder northern and eastern parts of Europe and western Asia the common wood pigeon is a migrant, but in southern and western Europe it is a well distributed and often abundant resident. In Great Britain wood pigeons are commonly seen in parks and gardens[5] and are seen with increasing numbers in towns and cities.

tag: p

text: Description[edit]

text: The three Western European Columba pigeons, common wood pigeon, stock dove, and rock pigeon, though superficially alike, have very distinctive characteristics; the common wood pigeon may be identified at once by its larger size at 38–44.5 cm (15.0–17.5 in) and 300–615 g (10.6–21.7 oz), and the white on its neck and wing.[6] It is otherwise a basically grey bird, with a pinkish breast. The wingspan can range from 68 to 80 cm (27 to 31 in) and the wing chord measures 24 to 25.4 cm (9.4 to 10.0 in). The tail measures 13.8 to 15 cm (5.4 to 5.9 in), the bill is 1.9 to 2.2 cm (0.75 to 0.87 in) and the tarsus is 2.5 to 2.8 cm (0.98 to 1.10 in).[7] Adult birds bear a series of green and white patches on their necks, and a pink patch on their chest.

text: Juvenile birds do not have the white patches on either side of the neck. When they are about six months old (about three months out of the nest) they gain small white patches on both sides of the neck, which gradually enlarge until they are fully formed when the bird is about 6–8 months old (approx. ages only). Juvenile birds also have a greyer beak and an overall lighter grey appearance than adult birds.

text: Behaviour[edit]

text: Its flight is quick, performed by regular beats, with an occasional sharp flick of the wings, characteristic of pigeons in general. It takes off with a loud clattering. It perches well, and in its nuptial display walks along a horizontal branch with swelled neck, lowered wings, and fanned tail. During the display flight the bird climbs, the wings are smartly cracked like a whiplash, and the bird glides down on stiff wings. The common wood pigeon is gregarious, often forming very large flocks outside the breeding season. Like many species of pigeon, wood pigeons take advantage of trees and buildings to gain a vantage point over the surrounding area, and their distinctive call means that they are usually heard before they are seen.

text: Breeding[edit]

text: It breeds in trees in woods, parks and gardens, laying two white eggs in a simple stick nest which hatch after 17 to 19 days. Wood pigeons seem to have a preference for trees near roadways and rivers. Males exhibit aggressive behaviour towards each other during the breeding season by jumping and flapping wings at each other. Their plumage becomes much darker, especially the head, during hot summer periods.

text: The nests are vulnerable to attack, particularly by crows, because they live in the countryside, the more so early in the year when the leaf cover is not fully formed. The young usually fly at 33 to 34 days; however, if the nest is disturbed, some young may be able to survive having left the nest as early as 20 days from hatching.

text: Diet[edit]

text: Most of its diet is vegetable, round and fleshy leaves from Caryophyllaceae, Asteraceae, and cruciferous vegetables taken from open fields or gardens and lawns; young shoots and seedlings are favoured, and it will take grain, pine nuts, and certain fruits and berries. In the autumn they also eat figs and acorns, and in winter buds of trees and bushes. They will also eat larvae, ants, and small worms. They need open water to drink and bathe in. This species can be an agricultural pest, and it is often shot, being a legal quarry species in most European countries. It is wary in rural areas, but often quite tame where it is not persecuted. Young common wood pigeons swiftly become fat, as a result of the crop milk they are fed by their parents. This is an extremely rich, sweet fluid that is produced in the adult birds' crops during the breeding season.

text: Call[edit]

text: The call is a characteristic cooing, coo-COO-coo-coo-coo.

text: Subspecies[edit]

text:
Azores wood pigeon Columba palumbus azorica Hartert, 1905
Asian wood pigeon Columba palumbus casiotis (Bonaparte, 1854)
North African wood pigeon Columba palumbus excelsa (Bonaparte, 1856)
Iranian wood pigeon Columba palumbus iranica (Zarudny, 1910)
Madeiran wood pigeon Columba palumbus maderensis Tschusi, 1904 †
European woodpigeon Columba palumbus palumbus Linnaeus, 1758

tag: ul

text: Predators[edit]

text: Predators include:

text:
Eurasian sparrowhawk
Northern goshawk
Domestic cat


document_title: Winter solstice

question_text: the shortest day length that occurs in the northen hemisphere

text: Winter solstice

text: History and cultural significance[edit]

text: This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

tag: table

text: The solstice may have been a special moment of the annual cycle for some cultures even during neolithic times. Astronomical events were often used to guide activities such as the mating of animals, the sowing of crops and the monitoring of winter reserves of food. Many cultural mythologies and traditions are derived from this. This is attested by physical remains in the layouts of late Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeological sites, such as Stonehenge in England and Newgrange in Ireland. The primary axes of both of these monuments seem to have been carefully aligned on a sight-line pointing to the winter solstice sunrise (Newgrange) and the winter solstice sunset (Stonehenge). It is significant that at Stonehenge the Great Trilithon was oriented outwards from the middle of the monument, i.e. its smooth flat face was turned towards the midwinter Sun.[4] The winter solstice was immensely important because the people were economically dependent on monitoring the progress of the seasons. Starvation was common during the first months of the winter, January to April (northern hemisphere) or July to October (southern hemisphere), also known as "the famine months". In temperate climates, the midwinter festival was the last feast celebration, before deep winter began. Most cattle were slaughtered so they would not have to be fed during the winter, so it was almost the only time of year when a plentiful supply of fresh meat was available. The majority of wine and beer made during the year was finally fermented and ready for drinking at this time. The concentration of the observances were not always on the day commencing at midnight or at dawn, but at the beginning of the pagan day, which in many cultures fell on the previous eve.[5] Because the event was seen as the reversal of the Sun's ebbing presence in the sky, concepts of the birth or rebirth of sun gods have been common and, in cultures which used cyclic calendars based on the winter solstice, the "year as reborn" was celebrated with reference to life-death-rebirth deities or "new beginnings" such as Hogmanay's redding, a New Year cleaning tradition. Also "reversal" is yet another frequent theme, as in Saturnalia's slave and master reversals.

text: Iranian people celebrate the night of the Northern Hemisphere's winter solstice as, "Yalda night", which known to be the "longest and darkest night of the year". In this night all the family gather together, usually at the house of the oldest, and celebrate it by eating, drinking and reading poems (esp. Hafez). Nuts, pomegranates and watermelons are particularly served during this festival.

text: The pagan Scandinavian and Germanic people of northern Europe celebrated a twelve-day "midwinter" (winter solstice) holiday called Yule (also called Jul, Julblot, jólablót, midvinterblot, julofferfest). Many modern Christmas traditions, such as the Christmas tree, the Christmas wreath, the Yule log, and others, are direct descendents of Yule customs. Scandinavians still call Yule "Jul". In English, the word "Yule" is often used in combination with the season "yuletide" [6] a usage first recorded in 900. It is believed that the celebration of this day was a worship of these peculiar days, interpreted as the reawakening of nature. The Yule (Jul) particular god was Jólner, which is one of Odin's many names. The concept of Yule occurs in a tribute poem to Harold Hårfager from about AD 900, where someone said "drinking Jul". Julblot is the most solemn sacrifice feast. At the "julblotet", sacrifices were given to the gods to earn blessing on the forthcoming germinating crops. Julblotet was eventually integrated into the Christian Christmas. As a remainder from this Viking era, the Midsummer is still important in Scandinavia, and hence vividly celebrated.

text: Sol Invictus ("The Unconquered Sun") was originally a Syrian god who was later adopted as the chief god of the Roman Empire under Emperor Aurelian. His holiday is traditionally celebrated on December 25, as are several gods associated with the winter solstice in many pagan traditions.[7]

text: The Christmas carol In The Bleak Midwinter refers to the winter solstice in its title.

text: Observances[edit]

text: Although the instant of the solstice can be calculated,[8] direct observation of the solstice by amateurs is impossible because the sun moves too slowly or appears to stand still (the meaning of "solstice"). However, by use of astronomical data tracking, the precise timing of its occurrence is now public knowledge. One cannot directly detect the precise instant of the solstice (by definition, one cannot observe that an object has stopped moving until one later observes that it has not moved further from the preceding spot, or that it has moved in the opposite direction)[citation needed]. Further, to be precise to a single day, one must be able to observe a change in azimuth or elevation less than or equal to about 1/60 of the angular diameter of the sun. Observing that it occurred within a two-day period is easier, requiring an observation precision of only about 1/16 of the angular diameter of the sun. Thus, many observations are of the day of the solstice rather than the instant. This is often done by observing the sunrise and sunset or using an astronomically aligned instrument that allows a ray of light to be cast on a certain point around that time.

text:
Neolithic site of Goseck circle. The yellow lines are the direction the Sun rises and sets at winter solstice.

Sunrise at Stonehenge on the winter solstice

text: Holidays celebrated on the winter solstice[edit]

text:
Blue Christmas (holiday)
Brumalia (Ancient Rome)
Dongzhi Festival (Asia)
Korochun (Slavic)
Sanghamitta Day (Theravada Buddhism)

Shalako (Zuni)
Yaldā (Iran)
Yule in the Northern Hemisphere (Neopagan)
Ziemassvētki (ancient Latvia)

text: Length of the day on the winter solstice of the north[edit]

text: The following tables contain information on the length of the day on the winter solstice of the Northern Hemisphere and the summer solstice of the Southern Hemisphere (i.e. December solstice). The data was collected from the website of the Finnish Meteorological Institute on 22 December 2015, as well as from certain other websites.[9][10][11][12]

text: The data is arranged geographically and within the tables from the shortest day to the longest one.

text:
The Nordic countries and the Baltic states

City
Sunrise
22 Dec 2015
Sunset
22 Dec 2015
Length of the day

Rovaniemi
11:08
13:22
2 h 14 min

Reykjavík
11:22
15:29
4 h 07 min

Trondheim
10:01
14:31
4 h 30 min

Tórshavn
9:51
14:59
5 h 08 min

Helsinki
9:24
15:13
5 h 49 min

Oslo
9:18
15:12
5 h 54 min

Tallinn
9:17
15:20
6 h 02 min

Stockholm
8:43
14:48
6 h 04 min

Riga
9:00
15:43
6 h 43 min

Copenhagen
8:37
15:38
7 h 01 min

Vilnius
8:40
15:54
7 h 14 min

text:
Europe

City
Sunrise
22 Dec 2015
Sunset
22 Dec 2015
Length of the day

Edinburgh
8:42
15:40
6 h 57 min

Moscow
8:57
15:58
7 h 00 min

Berlin
8:15
15:54
7 h 39 min

London
8:04
15:53
7 h 49 min

Kiev
7:56
15:56
8 h 00 min

Paris
8:41
16:56
8 h 14 min

Rome
7:34
16:42
9 h 07 min

Madrid
8:34
17:51
9 h 17 min

Lisbon
7:51
17:18
9 h 27 min

Athens
7:37
17:09
9 h 31 min

text:
Africa

City
Sunrise
22 Dec 2015
Sunset
22 Dec 2015
Length of the day

Cairo
6:47
16:59
10 h 12 min

Dakar
7:30
18:46
11 h 15 min

Addis Ababa
6:35
18:11
11 h 36 min

Nairobi
6:25
18:37
12 h 11 min

Kinshasa
5:45
18:08
12 h 22 min

Dar es Salaam
6:05
18:36
12 h 31 min

Luanda
5:46
18:24
12 h 38 min

Antananarivo
5:10
18:26
13 h 16 min

Windhoek
6:04
19:35
13 h 31 min

Johannesburg
5:12
18:59
13 h 47 min

Cape Town
5:32
19:57
14 h 25 min

text:
Americas

City
Sunrise
22 Dec 2015
Sunset
22 Dec 2015
Length of the day

Fairbanks
10:58
14:40
3 h 41 min

Anchorage
10:14
15:42
5 h 27 min

Vancouver
8:05
16:16
8 h 11 min

Seattle
7:55
16:20
8 h 25 min

Ottawa
7:39
16:22
8 h 42 min

New York City
7:16
16:32
9 h 15 min

Washington, D.C.
7:23
16:49
9 h 26 min

Los Angeles
6:55
16:48
9 h 53 min

Dallas
7:25
17:25
9 h 59 min

Miami
7:03
17:35
10 h 31 min

Honolulu
7:04
17:55
10 h 50 min

Mexico City
7:06
18:03
10 h 57 min

Managua
6:01
17:26
11 h 24 min

Bogotá
5:59
17:50
11 h 51 min

Quito
6:08
18:16
12 h 08 min

Recife
5:00
17:35
12 h 35 min

Lima
5:41
18:31
12 h 50 min

La Paz
5:57
19:04
13 h 06 min

Rio de Janeiro
6:04
19:37
13 h 33 min

São Paulo
6:17
19:52
13 h 35 min

Santiago
6:29
20:52
14 h 22 min

Buenos Aires
5:37
20:06
14 h 28 min

Ushuaia
4:51
22:11
17 h 19 min

text:
Asia and Oceania

City
Sunrise
22 Dec 2015
Sunset
22 Dec 2015
Length of the day

Magadan
8:54
14:55
6 h 00 min

Petropavlovsk
9:36
17:10
7 h 33 min

Khabarovsk
8:48
17:07
8 h 18 min

Ulaanbaatar
8:39
17:02
8 h 22 min

Vladivostok
8:40
17:40
8 h 59 min

Beijing
7:32
16:52
9 h 20 min

Seoul
7:44
17:17
9 h 34 min

Tokyo
6:47
16:31
9 h 44 min

Shanghai
6:48
16:55
10 h 07 min

Lhasa
8:46
19:01
10 h 14 min

Delhi
7:09
17:28
10 h 19 min

Hong Kong
6:58
17:44
10 h 46 min

Manila
6:16
17:32
11 h 15 min

Bangkok
6:36
17:55
11 h 19 min

Singapore
7:01
19:04
12 h 03 min

Jakarta
5:36
18:05
12 h 28 min

Denpasar
5:58
18:36
12 h 37 min

Darwin
6:19
19:10
12 h 51 min

Papeete
5:21
18:32
13 h 10 min

Brisbane
4:49
18:42
13 h 52 min

Perth
5:07
19:22
14 h 14 min

Sydney
5:41
20:05
14 h 24 min

Auckland
5:58
20:39
14 h 41 min

Melbourne
5:54
20:42
14 h 47 min

Invercargill
5:50
21:39
15 h 48 min


document_title: Inguinal hernia surgery

question_text: when was mesh first used for hernia repair

text: Inguinal hernia surgery

text: Mesh repairs[edit]

text: Open repair (Lichtenstein, Shouldice, Bassini)[edit]

text: The most commonly performed inguinal hernia repair today is the Lichtenstein repair. A flat mesh is placed on top of the defect.[12]

text: It is a "tension-free" repair that does not put tension on muscles, contrary to Bassini and Shouldice suture repairs (but there are also tension-free suture repairs, like Desarda). It involves the placement of a mesh to strengthen the inguinal region. Patients typically go home within a few hours of surgery, often requiring no medication beyond paracetamol (Tylenol/acetaminophen). Patients are encouraged to walk as soon as possible postoperatively, and they can usually resume most normal activities within a week or two of the operation. Complications include chronic pain (varying from 6.9 to 11.7% for expert surgeons and from 18.1 to 39.4% for non-expert ones[13]), foreign-body sensation, stiffness, ischemic orchitis, testicular atrophy, dysejaculation, anejaculation or painful ejaculation in around 12%. They are often under-reported.[14][15][16][17] Recurrence rate is low, <2%.[citation needed]. In contrast to this however, benefits for patients with pre-existing erectile dysfunction or general sexual dysfunctions have been reported.[18]

text: Laparoscopic repair[edit]

text: There are two main methods of laparoscopic repair: transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) and totally extra-peritoneal (TEP) repair. When performed by a surgeon experienced in hernia repair, laparoscopic repair causes fewer complications than Lichtenstein, particularly less chronic pain. However, if the surgeon is experienced in general laparoscopic surgery but not in the specific subject of laparoscopic hernia surgery, laparoscopic repair is not advised as it causes more recurrence risk than Lichtenstein while also presenting risks of serious complications, as organ injury. Indeed, the TAPP approach needs to go through the abdomen. All that said, many surgeons are moving to laparoscopic methodologies as they cause smaller incisions, resulting in less bleeding, less infection, faster recovery, reduced hospitalization, and reduced chronic pain.[19][20]

text:
Laparoscopic mesh surgery, as compared to open mesh surgery

Advantages
Disadvantages

Quicker recovery[20][21]
Less pain during first days[20]
Fewer postoperative complications[21]

such as infections, bleeding and seromas[20]

Less risk of chronic pain[20]

Needs surgeon highly experienced

(>200 operations/year) in inguinal hernia repairs[citation needed]

Longer operating time[21]
Increased recurrence of primary hernias if

surgeon not experienced enough[21]

text: There is no difference in cost between laparoscopic and open repair as the increased costs of operation are offset by the decreased recovery period. Recurrence rates are identical when laparoscopy is performed by an experienced surgeon.[20] When performed by a surgeon less experienced in inguinal hernia lap repair, recurrence is larger than after Lichtenstein.[22]

text: Meshes[edit]

text: Permanent mesh[edit]

text: Commercial mesh[edit]

text: Commercial meshes are typically made of polypropylene or polyester. Marlex, Gore-Tex or Teflon meshes are sold by some companies. Lightweight meshes seem to cause less discomfort than heavyweight meshes.[23] Some repair kits combine a plug and a patch. Some plug-and-patch kits combine an absorbable plug with a nonabsorbable patch, like Bio-A, manufactured by W. L. Gore & Associates.[24][25]

text: Mosquito-net mesh[edit]

text: Meshes made of mosquito net cloth, in copolymer of polyethylene and polypropylene have been used for low-income patients in rural India and Ghana.[26] Each piece costs $0.01, 3700 times cheaper than an equivalent commercial mesh.[27][28] They give results identical to commercial meshes in terms of infection and recurrence rate at 5 years.[27]

text: Therefore, it remains to be shown that despite their considerably higher cost, standard commercial meshes could offer any practical improvement over mosquito-net cloth in inguinal hernia surgery.[29]

text: Complications[edit]

text: Complications are frequent (>10%). They include, but are not limited to: foreign-body sensation, chronic pain, ejaculation disorders, mesh migration, mesh folding (meshoma),[30] infection, adhesion formation, erosion into intraperitoneal organs.[31] Such complications usually become apparent weeks to years after the initial repair, presenting as abscess, fistula, or bowel obstruction.[32][33]

text: In the long term, polypropylene meshes face degradation,[34][35] due to heat effects. This increases the risk of stiffness and chronic pain.[34][35] Persistent inflammation and increased cell turnover at the mesh-tissue interface raised the possibility of cancer transformation.[36]

text: Cases of obstructive azoospermia have been related with the use of polypropylene mesh, due to the obstruction of the vas deferens as a result of the fibroblastic reaction to the mesh.[37][38] However, a recent study finds that this risk seems to be less than 1% [39] and therefore, it does not need to be notified in an informed consent.[40]

text: Absorbable mesh[edit]

text: Biomeshes are increasingly popular since their first use in 1999[41] and their subsequent introduction on the market in 2003. Their use is an instance of regenerative medicine. Unlike synthetic non-absorbable meshes, they are absorbable, and can be used for repair in an infected environment, such as an incarcerated hernia. Moreover, they seem to improve comfort and presumably, they reduce the risk of inguinodynia.[42] They have been tested after mesh-related inguinodynia.[43] Some meshes have a price comparable to the high end of synthetic meshes, the cheapest ($500) being Surgisis-Biodesign, manufactured by Cook Group, made from the extra cellular matrix of pig small intestinal submucosa.[44] Currently, there exists one synthetic totally absorbable mesh, Tigr Matrix, manufactured by Novus Scientific, on the US market (510(k) Food and Drug Administration clearance)[45] since 2010 and on the EU market since 2011. It only has one 3-year pre-clinical evidence on sheep.[46]

text: Though their benefit is not fully established yet,[47] the market for biological meshes is exploding, and if the current trend is confirmed, they may replace synthetic meshes in the US by 2016[48]

text: Suture repairs[edit]

text: Tension repairs[edit]

text: Bassini[edit]

text: The first efficient inguinal hernia repair was described by Edoardo Bassini in the 1880s.[49][50] The Bassini technique is a "tension" repair, in which the edges of the defect are sewn back together, without any mesh. In the Bassini technique, the conjoint tendon (formed by the distal ends of the transversus abdominis and internal oblique muscles) is approximated to the inguinal ligament and closed.[51] Today, Bassini's main interest is historical. It remains performed in some developing countries, if surgeons do not have knowledge of the mosquito-net alternative to commercial meshes in Lichtenstein repair, or if they ignore more efficient suture-based repairs.[citation needed]

text: McVay/Cooper's ligament[edit]

text: The floor of the canal is reinforced by approximating the transversus abdominal aponeurosis and transverse fascia to pectineal (Cooper's) ligament medially from the pubic tubercle to the femoral vein. Lateral to this the floor is restored by approximating the femoral sheath to the inguinal ligament. It is also used in femoral hernia repairs.

text: Shouldice[edit]

text: The Shouldice technique is the mainstream suture-based repair. It is a relatively difficult four layer reconstruction of fascia transversalis; however, it has relatively low reported recurrence rates in the hand of a surgeon experienced with this method.[52]

text: Shouldice repairs are less commonly used today than in previous years, especially in developed countries. This is mostly due to the fact that mesh-based Lichtenstein method is easier to perform. The Shouldice repair has a higher rate of hernia recurrence in the hands of surgeons inexperienced with them (<200 operations/year)[citation needed]. Another drawback is the post-operative pain due to the tension on muscles, which generally lasts some weeks. However, this pain is well-managed with analgesics, and this short-term pain must be balanced with the much lower risk of long-term pain of the Shouldice technique, which is half Lichtenstein (but similar to laparoscopic). This is why few tension repairs are still in use today; these include the Shouldice and the Cooper's ligament/McVay repair.[53][54]

text: The main advantage of the Shouldice technique remains the relatively low report of chronic pain (10% incidence), as compared with mesh-based open repair (Lichtenstein) (20% incidence). However, the risk of chronic pain with this method is comparable to a laparoscopic repair performed by a surgeon experienced with inguinal hernia repair (i.e. >200 hernias/year) (8% incidence) (and not simply a surgeon experienced with laparoscopy. This difference is important).[55]

text: Moreover, if the surgeon is not experienced enough with the Shouldice technique, as is the case for most surgeons nowadays[citation needed], mesh-based repair can be advised. For example, in developing countries, where commercial meshes are expensive, but where surgeons might also be less qualified, a mosquito-net mesh open repair can be better than Shouldice. Indeed, both have a similar cost (a mosquito-net mesh costs less than $0.01. Its sterilization costs less than $1), and mesh repair is easier to perform than Shouldice. Desarda repair is also another option, but it is less widely known.[56]

text: Another advantage of suture-based repairs over permanent mesh repairs is that they do not introduce significant permanent foreign-body material, at worst, only polypropylene non-absorbable sutures. Permanent meshes can cause additional long-term complications due to this fact.[citation needed]

text: Tension-free repairs[edit]

text: Desarda[edit]

text: The Desarda technique is an emerging suture-based technique.[57] It can be performed with absorbable sutures.[56] It is simpler and faster to perform than Shouldice and Lichtenstein.[58] It also gives similar results to Lichtenstein in terms of recurrence, with the significant benefit of not introducing permanent foreign-body material.[58][59][60] Moreover, this technique is tension-free,[61] mesh-free, and it pays attention to the physiology.[57] Other techniques using a flap from the external oblique aponeurosis were proposed independently by other surgeons.[62][63][64][65]

text: Guarnieri[edit]

text: Guarnieri technique appeared in 1988. It can be used with or without mesh.[66][67] Like Desarda technique, the Guarnieri method pays attention to the physiology, and it is also tension-free.[68]