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parakeet

(Encyclopedia)parakeet or parrakeet, common name for a widespread group of small parrots, native to the Indo-Malayan region and popular as cage birds. Parakeets have long, pointed tails, unlike the chunky lovebirds...

Northern Cape

(Encyclopedia)Northern Cape, province (2011 pop. 1,145,861), 144,015 sq mi (372,889 sq km), NW South Africa. In 1994, under South Africa's post-apartheid constitution, Northern Cape was created from the northern po...

cactus

(Encyclopedia)cactus, any plant of the family Cactaceae, a large group of succulents found almost entirely in the New World. A cactus plant is conspicuous for its fleshy green stem, which performs the functions of ...

mimic thrush

(Encyclopedia)mimic thrush, common name for members of the Mimidae, a family of exclusively American birds, allied to the wrens and thrushes, that includes the mockingbird, the catbird, and the thrashers. Mimic thr...

Liguria

(Encyclopedia)Liguria lĭgo͝orˈēə, Ital. lēgo͞oˈryä [key], region (1991 pop. 1,676,282), 2,098 sq mi (5,434 sq km), NW Italy, extending along the Ligurian Sea and bordering France on the west. The generally...

Kashi

(Encyclopedia)Kashi käshˈgär [key], city (1994 est. pop. 190,500), SW Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, on the Kaxgar (Kashgar) River (a tributary of the Tarim). It is the hub of an important commercial d...

Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

(Encyclopedia)Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region gwängˈshēˈ jwängˈ [key], province, c.85,000 sq mi (220,150 sq km), S China, bo...

Eastern Cape

(Encyclopedia)Eastern Cape, province, 65,238 sq mi (168,966 sq km), S central South Africa, on the Indian Ocean. In 1994, under South Africa's post-apartheid constitu...

Shanxi

(Encyclopedia)Shanxi or Shansi shänˈshēˈ [key], province (2010 pop. 35,712,111), c.60,000 sq mi (155,400 sq km), NE China. The capital is Taiyuan. It is bounded on the west and the south by the Huang He (Yellow...

Rhineland-Palatinate

(Encyclopedia)Rhineland-Palatinate rīnˈlănd pəlătˈĭnĭtˌ [key], Ger. Rheinland-Pfalz, state (1994 pop. 3,926,000), 7,658 sq mi (19,834 sq km), W Germany. Mainz is the capital. The state was formed in 1946 b...