The bumblebee bat was discovered in 1974. It is the only living species in the family Craseonycteridae.
As of the species' most recent review in 1996, the bat is listed by the IUCN as endangered, with a downward population trend.
Currently, the most significant and long-term threat to the Thai population could be the annual burning of forest areas, which is most prevalent during the bat's breeding season. In addition, the proposed construction of a pipeline from Burma to Thailand may have a negative impact. Threats to the Burmese population are not well known.
In 2007, the bat was identified by the EDGE project (evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered) as one of its top 10 "focal species".
Grimsby and Immingham Electric Railway
The Grimsby & Immingham Electric Railway was an electric tramway network linking the township of Grimsby and the then village of Immingham in Lincolnshire.
It is probably best described by the American term "Inter-Urban" as it links the places in its title by a reserved way rather than through the streets.
Chesterfield tramway
The Chesterfield and District Tramways Company was a tramway system in the Derbyshire town of Chesterfield.
Douglas Southern Electric Tramway
Douglas Southern Electric Tramway was a standard gauge tramway which ran from the top of Douglas Head on the Isle of Man to the nearby resort of Port Soderick atop the cliffs via a number of spectacular viaducts and bridges.
Etruscan shrew
The Etruscan shrew ("Suncus etruscus") is also known as the Etruscan pygmy shrew or the white-toothed pygmy shrew. It is the smallest known mammal by mass. The Bumblebee bat has a smaller skull.
The smallest adults of this shrew weigh about 1.3 grams and are 36 mm (1.42 inches) long. This small mammal is 60 mm from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail; the tail is about 40 mm long.
The shrew has a lifespan of 15 months. The Etruscan shrew lives in forests and brush areas between southern Asia and southern Europe. The shrew mostly eats insects.
Derby Tramways
Derby Tramway was tram system that serverd the city of Derby (then a town), England. It opened on 27 July 1904. It was closed nearly 30 years later, on the 29 June 1934.
Tramcar n°1 is the only Derby tramcar preserved and is located at the National Tramway Museum in Crich, Derbyshire. This tram was used for crew training prior to the opening of the system.
Ballan, Victoria
Ballan is a small town in Victoria, Australia. It is a part of the Shire of Moorabool. Ballan is north west of Melbourne, on the Werribee River. In 2006 there were 1808 people living in Ballan. The Western Freeway goes past the town.
The first people to live in the Ballan area were the Aborigines, the Wautharong people. The area was rich in animals with kangaroos, kangaroo rats, bandicoots, dingos, and two sorts of native cat. Many of these animals had gone by the end of the 1800s, with Europen settlement.
The first European settlers came from Tasmania, landing near Geelong, Victoria, and working their way up the Moorabool River with their sheep flocks. Robert Von Steiglitz first came to the area in 1838. He named it after Ballan in Ireland. Other early settler names included Covvie, Stead, Wallace and Egerton.
There were fights between the Wautharong people and white farmers during settlement. Robert Von Steiglitz said stated in his diary:
... it may be questioned by some feather-bed philanthropist whether we had the right to take the country from the blacks but I believe the general rule is that if people cultivate or graze the land they have a claim to it. These creatures did neither ...
Gold was found in the area in 1851. A lot of people came to look for gold. This was part of the Victorian Gold Rush. The Ballan Hotel dates from the gold rush period in 1851. The town was an important staging point for coaches going to the Ballarat goldfields. The Post Office opened in September 1853 although there were two earlier offices in the area named Ballan.
Ballan’s first primary school started on 8 January 1855.
The first Mechanics' Institute in Ballan was built in 1861. The current Mechanics' Institute built on land bought in 1881. The facade (front) of the building was taken down and rebuilt in 1922. The building houses the library for the town town and a hall.
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church in Ballan was opened in July 1866.
On 15 November 2003 a Sprinter train going to Ballarat was derailed (came off the tracks) between Ballan and Gordon hurting 61 people when it crashed into a car on a country railway crossing.
The town has an Australian Rules Football team playing in the Central Highlands Football League.
It also has two senior and three junior cricket teams in the Ballarat Cricket Association.
George Stephenson
George Stephenson (9 June 1781 12 August 1848) was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer. He built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives. He is known as the "Father of Railways". George was born in Wylam, which is in Northumberland.
Stephenson's rail gauge of 4 feet 8½ inches (1,435 mm), sometimes called the "Stephenson gauge", is the standard gauge for most of the world's railways. He also invented a miner's safety lamp, which was widely used in the north of England.
British Rail Class D3/3
British Rail Class D3/3 was a 0-6-0 shunting locomotive built by British Rail at their Derby Works in England. It was similar to the British Rail Class 08, except they were built with different engines and traction motors. They were all withdrawn and scrapped after only twelve years of service.
British Rail Class D3/5
British Rail Class D3/5 was a shunting locomotive built by British Rail at their Darlington Works in England. It was a diesel powered locomotive in the pre-TOPS period and the class was numbered 13152–13166 (later renumbered D3152-D3166).
British Rail Class D3/6
Class D3/6 were diesel shunters built in 1935 by English Electric for the London, Midland and Scottish Railway. They were the first of a new design of diesel shunters based on the English Electric 6K of 350 hp diesel engine. One demonstrator and ten production locomotives were built, numbered 7079 and 7069-7078 by the LMS. Three of these later became British Rail numbers 12000–12002 (previously 7074/76/79 respectively). The remainder were sold to the British War Department in 1940 and were shipped to France during World War II. Of these the first production locomotive, no. 7069, survived the war and was used in industrial service in France. It was later repatriated for preservation and is now based at the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway.
British Rail Class D3/7
British Railways Class D3/7 were diesel shunters built from May 1939 through to July 1942 by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway at their Derby Works. Like the earlier British Rail Class D3/6, they had the English Electric 6K diesel engine of . But a big change was having a "Jackshaft" type of connection between engine and wheels (like a diesel mechanical shunter). These were given LMS numbers 7080–7119. Ten were loaned to the War Department in 1941, and sold to the WD the following year. All ten survived the war; six were then sold to Egyptian Railways and four to Italian State Railways (Ferrovie dello Stato—FS).
British Rail Class D3/9
British Rail Class D3/9 was a class of four locomotives built by the London and North Eastern Railway at their Doncaster Works in England. It was a diesel powered locomotive in the pre-TOPS period.
British Rail Class D3/10
British Rail Class D3/10 was a locomotive commissioned by the Great Western Railway in England, and later taken over by British Railways. It was a diesel powered locomotive in the pre-TOPS period.
British Rail Class D3/11
British Rail Class D3/11 was a locomotive commissioned by the Great Western Railway, but delivered to its successor British Rail in England. It was a diesel powered locomotive in the pre-TOPS period.
British Rail Class D3/12