title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: In hermaphroditic animals, the costs of parental care can be evenly distributed between the sexes, e.g. earthworms. In some species of planarians, sexual behaviour takes the form of penis fencing. In this form of copulation, the individual that first penetrates the other with the penis, forces the other to be female, thus carrying the majority of the cost of reproduction. Post mating, banana slugs will some times gnaw off their partners penis as an act of sperm competition called apophallation. This is costly as they must heal, and spend more energy courting conspecifics that can act as male and female. A hypothesis suggests these slugs may be able to compensate the loss of the male function by directing energy that would have been put towards it to the female function. In the grey slug, the sharing of cost leads to a spectacular display, where the mates suspend themselves high above the ground from a slime thread, ensuring none of them can refrain from taking on the cost of egg-bearer.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Many animal species have specific mating (or breeding) periods e.g. (seasonal breeding) so that offspring are born or hatch at an optimal time. In marine species with limited mobility and external fertilisation like corals, sea urchins and clams, the timing of the common spawning is the only externally visible form of sexual behaviour. In areas with continuously high primary production, some species have a series of breeding seasons throughout the year. This is the case with most primates (who are primarily tropical and subtropical animals). Some animals (opportunistic breeders) breed dependent upon other conditions in their environment aside from time of year.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Mating seasons are often associated with changes to herd or group structure, and behavioural changes, including territorialism amongst individuals. These may be annual (e.g. wolves), biannual (e.g. dogs) or more frequently (e.g. horses). During these periods, females of most mammalian species are more mentally and physically receptive to sexual advances, a period scientifically described as oestrus but commonly described as being "in season" or "in heat". Sexual behaviour may occur outside oestrus, and such acts as do occur are not necessarily harmful.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Some mammals (e.g. domestic cats, rabbits and camelids) are termed "induced ovulators". For these species, the female ovulates due to an external stimulus during, or just prior to, mating, rather than ovulating cyclically or spontaneously. Stimuli causing induced ovulation include the sexual behaviour of coitus, sperm and pheromones. Domestic cats have penile spines. Upon withdrawal of a cat's penis, the spines rake the walls of the female's vagina, which may cause ovulation.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: For many amphibians, an annual breeding cycle applies, typically regulated by ambient temperature, precipitation, availability of surface water and food supply. This breeding season is accentuated in temperate regions, in boreal climate the breeding season is typically concentrated to a few short days in the spring. Some species, such as the "Rana clamitans" (green frog), spend from June to August defending their territory. In order to protect these territories, they use five vocalizations.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Like many coral reef dwellers, the clownfish spawn around the time of the full moon in the wild. In a group of clownfish, there is a strict dominance hierarchy. The largest and most aggressive female is found at the top. Only two clownfish, a male and a female, in a group reproduce through external fertilisation. Clownfish are sequential hermaphrodites, meaning that they develop into males first, and when they mature, they become females. If the female clownfish is removed from the group, such as by death, one of the largest and most dominant males will become a female. The remaining males will move up a rank in the hierarchy.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Various neurohormones stimulate sexual wanting in animals. In general, studies have suggested that dopamine is involved in sexual incentive motivation, oxytocin and melanocortins in sexual attraction, and noradrenaline in sexual arousal. Vasopressin is also involved in the sexual behaviour of some animals.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: The mating system of prairie voles is monogamous; after mating, they form a lifelong bond. In contrast, montane voles have a polygamous mating system. When montane voles mate, they form no strong attachments, and separate after copulation. Studies on the brains of these two species have found that it is two neurohormones and their respective receptors that are responsible for these differences in mating strategies. Male prairie voles release vasopressin after copulation with a partner, and an attachment to their partner then develops. Female prairie voles release oxytocin after copulation with a partner, and similarly develop an attachment to their partner.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Neither male nor female montane voles release high quantities of oxytocin or vasopressin when they mate. Even when injected with these neurohormones, their mating system does not change. In contrast, if prairie voles are injected with the neurohormones, they may form a lifelong attachment, even if they have not mated. The differing response to the neurohormones between the two species is due to a difference in the number of oxytocin and vasopressin receptors. Prairie voles have a greater number of oxytocin and vasopressin receptors compared to montane voles, and are therefore more sensitive to those two neurohormones. It's believed that it's the quantity of receptors, rather than the quantity of the hormones, that determines the mating system and bond-formation of either species.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Mother rats experience a postpartum estrus which makes them highly motivated to mate. However, they also have a strong motivation to protect their newly born pups. As a consequence, the mother rat solicits males to the nest but simultaneously becomes aggressive towards them to protect her young. If the mother rat is given injections of an oxytocin receptor antagonist, they no longer experience these maternal motivations.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Grooming, sex, and cuddling frequencies correlate positively with levels of oxytocin. As the level of oxytocin increases so does sexual motivation. While oxytocin plays a major role in parent child relationships, it is also found to play a role in adult sexual relationships. Its secretion affects the nature of the relationship or if there will even be a relationship at all.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Studies have shown that oxytocin is higher in monkeys in lifelong monogamous relationships compared to monkeys which are single. Furthermore, the oxytocin levels of the couples correlate positively; when the oxytocin secretion of one increases, the other one also increases. Higher levels of oxytocin are related to monkeys expressing more behaviours such as cuddling, grooming and sex, while lower levels of oxytocin reduce motivation for these activities.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Research on oxytocin's role in the animal brain suggests that it plays less of a role in behaviours of love and affection than previously believed. "When oxytocin was first discovered in 1909, it was thought mostly to influence a mother's labour contractions and milk let-down. Then, in the 1990s, research with prairie voles found that giving them a dose of oxytocin resulted in the formation of a bond with their future mate (Azar, 40)." Oxytocin has since been treated by the media as the sole player in the "love and mating game" in mammals. This view, however, is proving to be false as, "most hormones don't influence behaviour directly. Rather, they affect thinking and emotions in variable ways (Azar, 40)." There is much more involved in sexual behaviour in the mammalian animal than oxytocin and vasopressin can explain.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: It is often assumed that animals do not have sex for pleasure, or alternatively that humans, pigs, bonobos (and perhaps dolphins and one or two more species of primates) are the only species that do. This is sometimes stated as "animals mate only for reproduction". This view is considered a misconception by some scholars. Jonathan Balcombe argues that the prevalence of non-reproductive sexual behaviour in certain species suggests that sexual stimulation is pleasurable. He also points to the presence of the clitoris in some female mammals, and evidence for female orgasm in primates. On the other hand, it is impossible to know the subjective feelings of animals, and the notion that non-human animals experience emotions similar to humans is a contentious subject.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: A 2006 Danish Animal Ethics Council report, which examined current knowledge of animal sexuality in the context of legal queries concerning sexual acts by humans, has the following comments, primarily related to domestically common animals:


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Even though the evolution-related purpose of mating can be said to be reproduction, it is not actually the creating of offspring which originally causes them to mate. It is probable that they mate because they are motivated for the actual copulation, and because this is connected with a positive experience. It is therefore reasonable to assume that there is some form of pleasure or satisfaction connected with the act. This assumption is confirmed by the behaviour of males, who in the case of many species are prepared to work to get access to female animals, especially if the female animal is in oestrus, and males who for breeding purposes are used to having sperm collected become very eager, when the equipment they associate with the collection is taken out. . . . There is nothing in female mammals' anatomy or physiology that contradicts that stimulation of the sexual organs and mating is able to be a positive experience. For instance, the clitoris acts in the same way as with women, and scientific studies have shown that the success of reproduction is improved by stimulation of clitoris on (among other species) cows and mares in connection with insemination, because it improves the transportation of the sperm due to contractions of the inner genitalia. This probably also applies to female animals of other animal species, and contractions in the inner genitals are seen e.g. also during orgasm for women. It is therefore reasonable to assume that sexual intercourse may be linked with a positive experience for female animals.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Koinophilia is the love of the "normal" or phenotypically common (from the Greek , , meaning "usual" or "common"). The term was introduced to scientific literature in 1990, and refers to the tendency of animals seeking a mate to prefer that mate not to have any unusual, peculiar or deviant features. Similarly, animals preferentially choose mates with low fluctuating asymmetry. However, animal sexual ornaments can evolve through runaway selection, which is driven by (usually female) selection for non-standard traits.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: The field of study of sexuality in non-human species was a long-standing taboo. In the past, researchers sometimes failed to observe, miscategorised or misdescribed sexual behaviour which did not meet their preconceptions—their bias tended to support what would now be described as conservative sexual mores. An example of overlooking behaviour relates to descriptions of giraffe mating:


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: When nine out of ten pairings occur between males, "[e]very male that sniffed a female was reported as sex, while anal intercourse with orgasm between males was only [categorized as] 'revolving around' dominance, competition or greetings."


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: In the 21st century, liberal social or sexual views are often projected upon animal subjects of research. Popular discussions of bonobos are a frequently cited example. Current research frequently expresses views such as that of the Natural History Museum at the University of Oslo, which in 2006 held an exhibition on animal sexuality:


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Many researchers have described homosexuality as something altogether different from sex. They must realise that animals can have sex with who they will, when they will and without consideration to a researcher's ethical principles.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Other animal activities may be misinterpreted due to the frequency and context in which animals perform the behaviour. For example, domestic ruminants display behaviours such as mounting and head-butting. This often occurs when the animals are establishing dominance relationships and are not necessarily sexually motivated. Careful analysis must be made to interpret what animal motivations are being expressed by those behaviours.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Copulation is the union of the male and female sex organs, the sexual activity specifically organized to transmit male sperm into the body of the female.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Alternative male strategies which allow small males to engage in cuckoldry can develop in species such as fish where spawning is dominated by large and aggressive males. Cuckoldry is a variant of polyandry, and can occur with "sneak spawners". A sneak spawner is a male that rushes in to join the spawning rush of a spawning pair. A spawning rush occurs when a fish makes a burst of speed, usually on a near vertical incline, releasing gametes at the apex, followed by a rapid return to the lake or sea floor or fish aggregation. Sneaking males do not take part in courtship. In salmon and trout, for example, "jack males" are common. These are small silvery males that migrate upstream along with the standard, large, hook-nosed males and that spawn by sneaking into redds to release sperm simultaneously with a mated pair. This behaviour is an evolutionarily stable strategy for reproduction, because it is favoured by natural selection just like the "standard" strategy of large males.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Hermaphroditism occurs when a given individual in a species possesses both male and female reproductive organs, or can alternate between possessing first one, and then the other. Hermaphroditism is common in invertebrates but rare in vertebrates. It can be contrasted with gonochorism, where each individual in a species is either male or female, and remains that way throughout their lives. Most fish are gonochorists, but hermaphroditism is known to occur in 14 families of teleost fishes.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Usually hermaphrodites are "sequential", meaning they can switch sex, usually from female to male (protogyny). This can happen if a dominant male is removed from a group of females. The largest female in the harem can switch sex over a few days and replace the dominant male. This is found amongst coral reef fishes such as groupers, parrotfishes and wrasses. As an example, most wrasses are protogynous hermaphrodites within a haremic mating system. It is less common for a male to switch to a female (protandry). A common example of a protandrous species are clownfish—if the larger, dominant female dies, in many cases, the reproductive male gains weight and becomes the female. Hermaphroditism allows for complex mating systems. Wrasses exhibit three different mating systems: polygynous, lek-like, and promiscuous mating systems.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Sexual cannibalism is a behaviour in which a female animal kills and consumes the male before, during, or after copulation. Sexual cannibalism confers fitness advantages to both the male and female. Sexual cannibalism is common among insects, arachnids and amphipods. There is also evidence of sexual cannibalism in gastropods and copepods.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Sex in a forceful or apparently coercive context has been documented in a variety of species. In some herbivorous herd species, or species where males and females are very different in size, the male dominates sexually by force and size.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Some species of birds have been observed combining sexual intercourse with apparent violent assault; these include ducks, and geese. Female white-fronted bee-eaters are subjected to forced copulations. When females emerge from their nest burrows, males sometimes force them to the ground and mate with them. Such forced copulations are made preferentially on females who are laying and who may therefore lay eggs fertilized by the male.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: It has been reported that young male elephants in South Africa sexually coerced and killed rhinoceroses. This interpretation of the elephants' behaviour was disputed by one of the original study's authors, who said there was "nothing sexual about these attacks".


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Parthenogenesis is a form of asexual reproduction in which growth and development of embryos occur without fertilisation. Technically, parthenogenesis is not a behaviour, however, sexual behaviours may be involved.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Whip-tailed lizard females have the ability to reproduce through parthenogenesis and as such males are rare and sexual breeding non-standard. Females engage in "pseudocopulation" to stimulate ovulation, with their behaviour following their hormonal cycles; during low levels of oestrogen, these (female) lizards engage in "masculine" sexual roles. Those animals with currently high oestrogen levels assume "feminine" sexual roles. Lizards that perform the courtship ritual have greater fecundity than those kept in isolation due to an increase in hormones triggered by the sexual behaviours. So, even though asexual whiptail lizards populations lack males, sexual stimuli still increase reproductive success. From an evolutionary standpoint these females are passing their full genetic code to all of their offspring rather than the 50% of genes that would be passed in sexual reproduction.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: It is rare to find true parthenogenesis in fishes, where females produce female offspring with no input from males. All-female species include the Texas silverside, "Menidia clarkhubbsi" and a complex of Mexican mollies.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Parthenogenesis has been recorded in 70 vertebrate species including hammerhead sharks, blacktip sharks, amphibians


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Unisexuality occurs when a species is all-male or all-female. Unisexuality occurs in some fish species and can take complex forms. "Squalius alburnoides", a minnow found in several river basins in Portugal and Spain, appears to be an all-male species. The existence of this species illustrates the potential complexity of mating systems in fish. The species originated as a hybrid between two species and is diploid but not hermaphroditic. It can have triploid and tetraploid forms, including all-female forms that reproduce mainly through hybridogenesis.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: There is a range of behaviours that animals perform that appear to be sexually motivated but which can not result in reproduction. These include:


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Seahorses, once considered to be monogamous species with pairs mating for life, were described in a 2007 study as "promiscuous, flighty, and more than a little bit gay". Scientists at 15 aquaria studied 90 seahorses of three species. Of 3,168 sexual encounters, 37% were same-sex acts. Flirting was common (up to 25 potential partners a day of both sexes); only one species (the British spiny seahorse) included faithful representatives, and for these 5 of 17 were faithful, 12 were not. Bisexual behaviour was widespread and considered "both a great surprise and a shock", with big-bellied seahorses of both sexes not showing partner preference. 1,986 contacts were male-female, 836 were female-female and 346 were male-male.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Among bonobos, males and females engage in sexual behaviour with the same and the opposite sex, with females being particularly noted for engaging in sexual behaviour with each other and at up to 75% of sexual activity being non-reproductive, as being sexually active does not necessarily correlate with their ovulation cycles. Sexual activity occurs between almost all ages and sexes of bonobo societies. Primatologist Frans de Waal believes that bonobos use sexual activity to resolve conflict between individuals. Immature bonobos, contrariwise, perform genital contact when relaxed.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Similar same-sex sexual behaviours occur in both male and female macaques. It is thought to be done for pleasure as an erect male mounts and thrusts upon or into another male. Sexual receptivity can also be indicated by red faces and shrieking. Mutual ejaculation after a combination of anal intercourse and masturbation has also been witnessed, although it may be rare. In comparison to socio-sexual behaviours such as dominance displays, homosexual mounts last longer, happen in series, and usually involve pelvic thrusting.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Females are also thought to participate for pleasure as vulvar, perineal, and anal stimulation is part of these interactions. The stimulation can come from their own tails, mounting their partner, thrusting or a combination of these.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Male bottlenose dolphins have been observed working in pairs to follow or restrict the movement of a female for weeks at a time, waiting for her to become sexually receptive. The same pairs have also been observed engaging in intense sexual play with each other. Janet Mann, a professor of biology and psychology at Georgetown University, argues that the common same-sex behaviour among male dolphin calves is about bond formation and benefits the species evolutionarily. They cite studies that have shown the dolphins later in life are bisexual and the male bonds forged from homosexuality work for protection as well as locating females with which to reproduce. In 1991, an English man was prosecuted for allegedly having sexual contact with a dolphin. The man was found not guilty after it was revealed at trial that the dolphin was known to tow bathers through the water by hooking his penis around them.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: The female spotted hyena has a unique urinary-genital system, closely resembling the penis of the male, called a pseudo-penis. Dominance relationships with strong sexual elements are routinely observed between related females. They are notable for using visible sexual arousal as a sign of submission but not dominance in males as well as females (females have a sizeable erectile clitoris). It is speculated that to facilitate this, their sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems may be partially reversed in respect to their reproductive organs.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Mammals mate by vaginal copulation. To achieve this, the male usually mounts the female from behind. The female may exhibit lordosis in which she arches her back ventrally to facilitate entry of the penis. Amongst the land mammals, other than humans, only bonobos mate in a face-to-face position, as the females' anatomy seems to reflect, although ventro-ventral copulation has also been observed in "Rhabdomys." Some sea mammals copulate in a belly-to-belly position. Some camelids mate in a lying-down position. In most mammals ejaculation occurs after multiple intromissions, but in most primates, copulation consists of one brief intromission. In most ruminant species, a single pelvic thrust occurs during copulation. In most deer species, a copulatory jump also occurs.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: During mating, a "copulatory tie" occurs in mammals such as fossas, canids and Japanese martens. A "copulatory lock" also occurs in some primate species, such as "Galago senegalensis."


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Some females have concealed fertility, making it difficult for males to evaluate if a female is fertile. This is costly as ejaculation expends much energy.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Invertebrates are often hermaphrodites. Some hermaphroditic land snails begin mating with an elaborate tactile courting ritual. The two snails circle around each other for up to six hours, touching with their tentacles, and biting lips and the area of the genital pore, which shows some preliminary signs of the eversion of the penis. As the snails approach mating, hydraulic pressure builds up in the blood sinus surrounding an organ housing a sharpened dart. The dart is made of calcium carbonate or chitin, and is called a love dart. Each snail manoeuvres to get its genital pore in the best position, close to the other snail's body. Then, when the body of one snail touches the other snail's genital pore, it triggers the firing of the love dart. After the snails have fired their darts, they copulate and exchange sperm as a separate part of the mating progression. The love darts are covered with a mucus that contains a hormone-like substance that facilitates the survival of the sperm.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Penis fencing is a mating behaviour engaged in by certain species of flatworm, such as "Pseudobiceros bedfordi". Species which engage in the practice are hermaphroditic, possessing both eggs and sperm-producing testes. The species "fence" using two-headed dagger-like penises which are pointed, and white in colour. One organism inseminates the other. The sperm is absorbed through pores in the skin, causing fertilisation.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Corals can be both gonochoristic (unisexual) and hermaphroditic, each of which can reproduce sexually and asexually. Reproduction also allows corals to settle new areas. Corals predominantly reproduce sexually. 25% of hermatypic corals (stony corals) form single sex (gonochoristic) colonies, while the rest are hermaphroditic. About 75% of all hermatypic corals "broadcast spawn" by releasing gametes eggs and sperm into the water to spread offspring. The gametes fuse during fertilisation to form a microscopic larva called a planula, typically pink and elliptical in shape. Synchronous spawning is very typical on the coral reef and often, even when multiple species are present, all corals spawn on the same night. This synchrony is essential so that male and female gametes can meet. Corals must rely on environmental cues, varying from species to species, to determine the proper time to release gametes into the water. The cues involve lunar changes, sunset time, and possibly chemical signalling. Synchronous spawning may form hybrids and is perhaps involved in coral speciation.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Butterflies spend much time searching for mates. When the male spots a mate, he will fly closer and release pheromones. He then performs a special courtship dance to attract the female. If the female appreciates the dancing she may join him. Then they join their bodies together end to end at their abdomens. Here, the male passes the sperm to the female's egg-laying tube, which will soon be fertilised by the sperm.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Many animals make plugs of mucus to seal the female's orifice after mating. Normally such plugs are secreted by the male, to block subsequent partners. In spiders the female can assist the process. Spider sex is unusual in that males transfer their sperm to the female on small limbs called pedipalps. They use these to pick their sperm up from their genitals and insert it into the female's sexual orifice, rather than copulating directly. On the 14 occasions a sexual plug was made, the female produced it without assistance from the male. On ten of these occasions the male's pedipalps then seemed to get stuck while he was transferring the sperm (which is rarely the case in other species of spider), and he had great difficulty freeing himself. In two of those ten instances, he was eaten as a result.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: In the orb-weaving spider species "Zygiella x-notata", individuals engage in a variety of sexual behaviors including male choosiness, mate guarding, and vibrational signaling in courtship.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Research into human evolution confirms that, in some cases, interspecies sexual activity may have been responsible for the evolution of new species (speciation). Analysis of animal genes found evidence that, after humans had diverged from other apes, interspecies mating nonetheless occurred regularly enough to change certain genes in the new gene pool. Researchers found that the X chromosomes of humans and chimps may have diverged around 1.2 million years after the other chromosomes. One possible explanation is that modern humans emerged from a hybrid of human and chimp populations. A 2012 study questioned this explanation, concluding that "there is no strong reason to involve complicated factors in explaining the autosomal data".


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: When close relatives mate, progeny may exhibit the detrimental effects of inbreeding depression. Inbreeding depression is predominantly caused by the homozygous expression of recessive deleterious alleles. Over time, inbreeding depression may lead to the evolution of inbreeding avoidance behaviour. Several examples of animal behaviour that reduce mating of close relatives and inbreeding depression are described next.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Reproductively active female naked mole-rats tend to associate with unfamiliar males (usually non-kin), whereas reproductively inactive females do not discriminate. The preference of reproductively active females for unfamiliar males is interpreted as an adaptation for avoiding inbreeding.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: When mice inbreed with close relatives in their natural habitat, there is a significant detrimental effect on progeny survival. In the house mouse, the major urinary protein (MUP) gene cluster provides a highly polymorphic scent signal of genetic identity that appears to underlie kin recognition and inbreeding avoidance. Thus there are fewer matings between mice sharing MUP haplotypes than would be expected if there were random mating.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Meerkat females appear to be able to discriminate the odour of their kin from the odour of their non-kin. Kin recognition is a useful ability that facilitates both cooperation among relatives and the avoidance of inbreeding. When mating does occur between meerkat relatives, it often results in inbreeding depression. Inbreeding depression was evident for a variety of traits: pup mass at emergence from the natal burrow, hind-foot length, growth until independence and juvenile survival.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: The grey-sided vole ("Myodes rufocanus") exhibits male-biased dispersal as a means of avoiding incestuous matings. Among those matings that do involve inbreeding the number of weaned juveniles in litters is significantly smaller than that from non-inbred litters indicating inbreeding depression.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: In natural populations of the bird "Parus major" (great tit), inbreeding is likely avoided by dispersal of individuals from their birthplace, which reduces the chance of mating with a close relative.


title: Animal sexual behaviour

text: Toads display breeding site fidelity, as do many amphibians. Individuals that return to natal ponds to breed will likely encounter siblings as potential mates. Although incest is possible, "Bufo americanus" siblings rarely mate. These toads likely recognise and actively avoid close kins as mates. Advertisement vocalisations by males appear to serve as cues by which females recognise their kin.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent), observed in many Christian countries through participating in confession and absolution, the ritual burning of the previous year's Holy Week palms, finalizing one's Lenten sacrifice, as well as eating pancakes and other sweets.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Shrove Tuesday is observed by many Christians, including Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists and Roman Catholics, who "make a special point of self-examination, of considering what wrongs they need to repent, and what amendments of life or areas of spiritual growth they especially need to ask God's help in dealing with." This moveable feast is determined by Easter. The expression "Shrove Tuesday" comes from the word "shrive", meaning "absolve".


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: As this is the last day of the Christian liturgical season historically known as Shrovetide, before the penitential season of Lent, related popular practices, such as indulging in food that one might give up as their Lenten sacrifice for the upcoming forty days, are associated with Shrove Tuesday celebrations. The term "Mardi Gras" is French for "Fat Tuesday", referring to the practice of the last night of eating richer, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season, which begins on Ash Wednesday. Many Christian congregations thus observe the day through eating pancakes or, more specifically, the holding of pancake breakfasts, as well as the ringing of church bells to remind people to repent of their sins before the start of Lent. On Shrove Tuesday, churches also burn the palms distributed during the previous year's Palm Sunday liturgies to make the ashes used during the services held on the very next day, Ash Wednesday.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In some Christian countries, especially those where the day is called Mardi Gras or a translation thereof, it is a carnival day, the last day of "fat eating" or "gorging" before the fasting period of Lent.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: The tradition of marking the start of Lent has been documented for centuries. Ælfric of Eynsham's "Ecclesiastical Institutes" from around 1000 AD states: "In the week immediately before Lent everyone shall go to his confessor and confess his deeds and the confessor shall so shrive him as he then may hear by his deeds what he is to do [in the way of penance]". By the time of the late Middle Ages, the celebration of Shrovetide lasted until the start of Lent. It was traditional in many societies to eat pancakes or other foods made with the butter, eggs and fat or lard that would need to be used up before the beginning of Lent. Similar foods are fasnachts and pączki. The specific custom of British Christians eating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday dates to the 16th century. Along with its emphasis on feasting, another theme of Shrove Tuesday involves Christians repenting of their sins in preparation to begin the season of Lent in the Christian liturgical calendar. In many Christian parish churches, both Protestant and Roman Catholic, a popular Shrove Tuesday tradition is the ringing of the church bells (on this day, the toll is known as the Shriving Bell) "to call the faithful to confession before the solemn season of Lent" and for people to "begin frying their pancakes".


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: The word "shrove" is a form of the English word "shrive", which means to obtain absolution for one's sins by way of Confession and doing penance. Thus Shrove Tuesday was named after the custom of Christians to be "shriven" before the start of Lent.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In the United Kingdom, Ireland and parts of the Commonwealth, Shrove Tuesday is also known as Pancake Day or Pancake Tuesday, as it became a traditional custom to eat pancakes as a meal. In Irish the day is known as "Máirt Inide", from the Latin "initium (Jejūniī)", "beginning of Lent." Elsewhere, the day has also been called ""Mardi Gras"", meaning "Fat Tuesday", after the type of celebratory meal that day.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Germany, the day is known as Fastnachtsdienstag, Faschingsdienstag, Karnevalsdienstag or Veilchendienstag (the last of which translates to violet [the flower] Tuesday). It is celebrated with fancy dress and a partial school holiday. Similarly, in German American areas, such as Pennsylvania Dutch Country, it is known as Fastnacht Day.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In the Netherlands, it is known as "vastenavond", or in Limburgish dialect "vastelaovend", though the word "vastelaovend" usually refers to the entire period of carnival in the Netherlands. In some parts of Switzerland (e.g. Lucerne), the day is called Güdeldienstag or Güdisdienstag (preceded by Güdismontag). According to the Duden dictionary, the term derives from "Güdel", which means a fat belly stuffed full of food.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Portuguese-, Spanish- and Italian-speaking countries, among others, it is known as Carnival (to use the English spelling). This derives from Medieval Latin "carnelevamen" ("the putting away of flesh") and thus to another aspect of the Lenten fast, to abstain from eating meat. It is often celebrated with street processions or fancy dress.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: The most famous of these events has become the Brazilian Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. Venetians have long celebrated carnival with a masquerade. The use of the term "carnival" in other contexts derives from this celebration. In Spain, the Carnival Tuesday is named "día de la tortilla" ("omelette day"): an omelette made with some sausage or pork fat is eaten. On the Portuguese island of Madeira, "malasadas" are eaten on "Terça-feira Gorda" (Fat Tuesday in English), which is also the last day of the Carnival of Madeira. Malasadas were cooked in order to use up all the lard and sugar in the house, in preparation for Lenten restrictions. This tradition was taken to Hawaii, where Shrove Tuesday is known as Malasada Day, which dates back to the days of the sugar plantations of the 1800s. The resident Catholic Portuguese workers (who came mostly from Madeira and the Azores) used up butter and sugar prior to Lent by making large batches of "malasadas".


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Denmark and Norway, the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday is called "Fetetirsdag" ("Fat Tuesday"); the prior weekend is known as "Fastelavn" and is marked by eating "fastelavnsboller". Fastelavn is the name for Carnival in Denmark, held either on the Sunday or Monday before Ash Wednesday. Fastelavn developed from the Roman Catholic tradition of celebrating in the days before Lent, but, after Denmark became a Protestant nation, the holiday became less specifically religious. This holiday occurs seven weeks before Easter Sunday, with children dressing up in costumes and gathering treats for the Fastelavn feast. The holiday is generally considered to be a time for children's fun and family games. In Estonia, the day is similarly called Vastlapäev and is generally celebrated by eating pea soup and whipped-cream or whipped-cream and jam-filled sweet-buns called "vastlakukkel", similar to the Swedish "fastlagsbulle" or "semla". Children also typically go sledding on this day.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Iceland, the day is known as "Sprengidagur" (Bursting Day) and is marked by eating salted meat and peas. In Lithuania, the day is called "Užgavėnės". People eat pancakes ("blynai") and Lithuanian-style doughnuts. In Sweden, the day is called Fettisdagen (Fat Tuesday), and is generally celebrated by eating a type of sweet roll called "fastlagsbulle" or "semla". In Finland, the day is called laskiainen and is generally celebrated by eating green pea soup and a pastry called laskiaispulla (sweet bread filled with whipped cream and jam or almond paste, same as the Swedish semla). The celebration often includes downhill sledging.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Poland, a related celebration falls on the Thursday before Ash Wednesday and is called (Fat Thursday). In some areas of the United States, with large Polish communities, such as Chicago, Buffalo and Michigan, Tłusty Czwartek is celebrated with or eating contests, music and other Polish food. It may be held on Shrove Tuesday or in the days immediately preceding it.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Slovenia, Kurentovanje is also the biggest and best known carnival. There are several more local carnivals usually referred to as Laufarija. In Hungary, and the Hungarian-speaking territories, it is called (literally the Tuesday leaving the meat) and is celebrated by fancy dress and visiting neighbours.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Shrove Tuesday serves a dual purpose of allowing Christians to repent of any sins they might have made before the start of Lent on the next day Ash Wednesday and giving them the opportunity to engage in a last round of merriment before the start of the somber Lenten season, which is characterized by making a Lenten sacrifice, fasting, praying and engaging in various spiritual disciplines, such as marking a Lenten calendar, fasting, abstaining from luxuries, and reading a daily devotional.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Pancakes are associated with Shrove Tuesday, the day preceding Lent, because they are a way to use up rich foods such as eggs, milk, and sugar, before the fasting season of the 40 days of Lent. The liturgical fasting emphasizes eating simpler food, and refraining from food that would give undue pleasure: in many cultures, this means no meat, lacticinia (dairy products) or eggs.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island, small tokens are frequently cooked in the pancakes. Children take delight in discovering the objects, which are intended to be divinatory. For example, the person who receives a coin will be wealthy; a nail indicates that they will become or marry a carpenter.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: On the final day of the Shrovetide season, Shrove Tuesday, many traditional Christians, such as Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists and Roman Catholics, "make a special point of self-examination, of considering what wrongs they need to repent, and what amendments of life or areas of spiritual growth they especially need to ask God's help in dealing with." As such, many churches offer confession and absolution on Shrove Tuesday.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: On Shrove Tuesday, many Christians finalize their decision with respect to what Lenten sacrifices they will make for Lent. While making a Lenten sacrifice, it is customary to pray for strength to keep it; many often wish others for doing so as well, e.g. "May God bless your Lenten sacrifice."


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: During Shrovetide, many churches place a basket in the narthex to collect the previous year's Holy Week palm branches that were blessed and distributed during the Palm Sunday liturgies; on Shrove Tuesday, churches burn these palms to make the ashes used during the services held on the very next day, Ash Wednesday.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In the United Kingdom, as part of community celebration, many towns held traditional Shrove Tuesday "mob football" games, some dating as far back as the 17th century. The practice mostly died out in the 19th century after the passing of the Highway Act 1835 which banned playing football on public highways. A number of towns have maintained the tradition, including Alnwick in Northumberland (Scoring the Hales), Ashbourne in Derbyshire (called the Royal Shrovetide Football), Atherstone in Warwickshire (called simply the Atherstone Ball Game), St Columb Major in Cornwall (called Hurling the Silver Ball), and Sedgefield in County Durham (Sedgefield Ball Game).


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Shrove Tuesday was once known as a "half-holiday" in Britain. It started at 11:00 am with the ringing of a church bell. On Pancake Day, "pancake races" are held in villages and towns across the United Kingdom. The tradition is said to have originated in 1445 when a housewife from Olney, Buckinghamshire, was so busy making pancakes that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the service. She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake, tossing it to prevent it from burning. The pancake race remains a relatively common festive tradition in the UK, especially England. Participants with frying pans race through the streets tossing pancakes into the air and catching them in the pan while running. The pancake race at Olney traditionally has women contestants who carry a frying pan and race over a 415-yard course to the finishing line. The rules are strict: contestants must toss the pancake at the start and the finish, and wear a scarf and apron.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Since 1950, the people of Liberal, Kansas, and Olney have held the "International Pancake Day" race between the two towns. The two towns' competitors race along an agreed-upon measured course. The times of the two towns' competitors are compared to determine a winner overall. As of 2021, Liberal leads the competition with 38 wins to Olney's 31. A similar race is held in North Somercotes in Lincolnshire, England.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In London, the Rehab Parliamentary Pancake Race takes place every Shrove Tuesday, with teams from the British lower house (the House of Commons), the upper house (the House of Lords), and the Fourth Estate, contending for the title of Parliamentary Pancake Race Champions. The fun relay race is to raise awareness of Rehab, which provides a range of health and social care, training, education, and employment services in the UK for disabled people and others who are marginalised.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Scarborough celebrates by closing the foreshore to all traffic, closing schools early, and inviting all to skip. Traditionally, long ropes were used from the nearby harbour. The town crier rang the pancake bell, situated on the corner of Westborough (main street) and Huntriss Row. Since 1996 a replica "pancake bell" situated at Newborough and North Street has been rung to initiate the day's festivities.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: The children of the hamlet of Whitechapel, Lancashire keep alive a local tradition by visiting local households and asking "please a pancake", to be rewarded with oranges or sweets. It is thought the tradition arose when farm workers visited the wealthier farm and manor owners to ask for pancakes or pancake fillings.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Shrove Tuesday in England often involved a form of ritual begging, not dissimilar to wassailing, in which children and adolescents would go door-to-door asking for tidbits from the frying pan. If the household was not forthcoming, they could expect levels of mischief, including the pelting of their house, knock and run, or gate stealing. This was known as Lent Crocking, Nicky-Nan Night, the Drawing of Cloam, Dappy-Door Night, or Pan Sharding.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Ireland, the observance of fasting at Lent continued up to the 20th century, with Shrove Tuesday marking the last day of the consumption of meat for the Lenten period. This was later relaxed, but with three days of fasting observed, Ash Wednesday, Spy Wednesday, and Good Friday. It was a tradition that the eldest unmarried daughter would toss the first pancake. If the pancake fell on the floor, she would remain unmarried for the next 12 months. As marriages were not traditionally permitted during the Lenten period, as decreed by the Council of Trent, weddings on Shrove Tuesday were popular. In some parts of Ireland the holly from Christmas was saved and burnt in the fire for the pancakes. The night was also known as Skellig Night in Counties Cork and Kerry, during the celebrations, those who were unmarried were taunted with jeers and singing.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Scandinavia, in particular in Finland and Sweden, the day is associated with the almond paste-filled sweet roll.


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: In Finland, the day is known as Laskiainen. It is a celebration with Finnish origins, which includes both pagan and ecclesiastic traditions, and is often described as a "mid-winter sliding festival".


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Thin pancakes called blini are traditional in Christian festivals in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia also at this time of year (Maslenitsa).


title: Shrove Tuesday

text: Shrove Tuesday is exactly 47 days before Easter Sunday, a moveable feast based on the cycles of the moon. The date can be between 3 February and 9 March inclusive.


title: Richard Beymer

text: George Richard Beymer Jr. (born February 20, 1938) is an American actor, filmmaker and artist who played the roles of Tony in the film version of "West Side Story" (1961), Peter in "The Diary of Anne Frank" (1959), and Ben Horne on the television series "Twin Peaks" (1990–1991, 2017).


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer was born in Avoca, Iowa, to George Richard Beymer, a printer, and his wife, Eunice (née Goss). He and his family moved in 1940 to Los Angeles.


title: Richard Beymer

text: In 1949, Beymer began acting in television in a Los Angeles TV series for children "Sandy Dreams" (1949–53). He did it for three years, rehearsing after school during the week and recording it on Saturdays. The show ended when he was 13.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer made his feature-film debut in Vittorio De Sica's "Stazione Termini" (1953). De Sica cast him in part because his dark complexion made him look like Jennifer Jones' nephew.


title: Richard Beymer

text: He was under contract to Jones' husband, David O. Selznick, for a year. Selznick loaned him to Warners to play Jane Wyman's piano protege in "So Big" (1953).


title: Richard Beymer

text: The contract with Selznick only lasted a year. Beymer found himself in much demand on television: "Cavalcade of America" (1954) and "Johnny Tremain" (1957). He guest starred in "26 Men", "Zane Grey Theatre", "Make Room for Daddy", "The Gray Ghost", "Navy Log", "Whirlybirds", "Sky King", "Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre", and "Schlitz Playhouse". He auditioned unsuccessfully for the role played by Sal Mineo in "Rebel Without a Cause" (1954).


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer achieved success when George Stevens cast him in "The Diary of Anne Frank" (1959) playing Peter Van Daan.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer was put under contract to 20th Century Fox and started to be regarded as an exciting future star. Producer William Perlberg later said, "It's a thing that periodically happens out here. Somebody comes along and talk starts and agents and studios keep talking and talking. Like an avalanche, the talk gathers speed. Ultimately that 'somebody' turns out to be a big name in Hollywood only."


title: Richard Beymer

text: After appearing in "Playhouse 90" he had a supporting role in "High Time" (1960), a comedy with Bing Crosby and Tuesday Weld at 20th Century Fox. "I wanted to be a very good actor," said Beymer later. "I wanted to work and let the work stand for something."


title: Richard Beymer

text: In June 1960, Beymer was cast in the lead role of Tony in "West Side Story" (1961), a huge hit. He shared a 1962 Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor with Bobby Darin and Warren Beatty.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer later said he "was miserable in "West Side Story". I didn't know enough at the time because I lacked certain knowledge in acting... I came out ridiculous. I didn't stand up for what I should have and I didn't know enough. The blame should be on me."


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer was reunited with Weld in the Fox comedy "Bachelor Flat" (1961). At Columbia he played the son of Rosalind Russell and Jack Hawkins in "Five Finger Exercise" (1962). Beymer later said he was "terrible" in that film.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer was given the role of Nick Adams in "Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man" (1962) for Fox, with an all-star supporting cast. Producer Jerry Wald says he and director Martin Ritt agreed that Beymer was "the young actor I think stands the best chance of being the next Gary Cooper." During filming Beymer met Sharon Tate and it was he who encouraged her to get into acting. The film was a big flop.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer had a significant role in the film "The Longest Day" (1962), which was successful, but he was unhappy with his acting in the film. "They tried to make me the nice kid next door," he said. "That's just not me. They said just play you - but I am not the all American boy."


title: Richard Beymer

text: In December 1962, Richard Zanuck of Fox wanted Beymer in "Illicit", based on a story by Vera Caspary but the film was not made; neither was "A Promise at Dawn" with Ingrid Bergman after Fox studio shut down temporarily due to cost overruns.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer started attending daily classes at the Actors Studio. "I just want to learn and be as professional as I can," he said.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Producer Wald and director Franklin Schaffner cast Beymer in "The Stripper" (1963) with Joanne Woodward, which was critically acclaimed but not a big hit. Beymer returned to New York. "I got sick of the whole thing and I left," he said.


title: Richard Beymer

text: In 1964, Beymer became involved in Freedom Summer in Mississippi. "You get tired of being a complainer, passive," he said.


title: Richard Beymer

text: He assisted Barney Frank in rescuing Freedom Democrat forms in a rental truck that had been confiscated from arrested Freedom volunteers in Canton, Mississippi on Freedom Day (July 16, 1964). During this time, he filmed the award-winning documentary "A Regular Bouquet: Mississippi Summer" (1964), documenting the efforts of volunteers registering African-Americans to vote.


title: Richard Beymer

text: In February 1964, he said all the films he had done except "The Longest Day" "should have been classroom work and never should have been shown publicly... I'm not a leading man. I'm a character actor. That is, I'm not a stereotyped leading man type. I'm kind of a schlepp at times... I don't care about billing and being a star. Being myself is the first thing."


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer guest starred in episodes of "Kraft Suspense Theatre", "The Virginian", "Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre", "Dr. Kildare", "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", and "Death Valley Days". He did "The Country Girl" on stage.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer returned to features with "Scream Free!" (1969) co-starring his "West Side Story" co-star Russ Tamblyn, also known as "Free Grass". It was never released.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer turned to filmmaking with "The Innerview" (1973), which he wrote, produced and directed as well as starred.


title: Richard Beymer

text: He starred in, wrote and directed episodes of the television series "Insight". He lived for two years in a commune and worked in Switzerland.


title: Richard Beymer

text: He appeared in "Cross Country" (1983). He had roles in "Paper Dolls" (1984), playing the husband of Mimi Rogers, and "Generation" (1985). His television appearances at the time include "Moonlighting", "Dallas", "The Bronx Zoo" and "Buck James", and co-starred in the film "" (1989).


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer was widely seen in "Twin Peaks" (1990–91) playing Ben Horne. He followed it in "Blackbelt" (1992) and "The Presence" (1993).


title: Richard Beymer

text: He made three appearances on "" as Li Nalas in the episodes "The Homecoming", "The Circle", and "The Siege".


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer could also be seen in "Under Investigation" (1993), "My Girl 2" (1994), "State of Emergency" (1994), "The Disappearance of Kevin Johnson" (1996), several episodes of "Murder, She Wrote", "A Face to Die For" (1996), "The Little Death" (1996), "Foxfire" (1996), "Elvis Meets Nixon" (1997) and "Home: the Horror Story". He was in episodes of "Flipper", "The X-Files", "Vengeance Unlimited", "Profiler", and "Family Law".


title: Richard Beymer

text: In 2019, Beymer visited the set of Steven Spielberg's remake of "West Side Story". In December 2021, the film's star, Rachel Zegler, released two photos on her Instagram page: One of Beymer sitting next to Spielberg; another of Beymer hugging Zegler while screenwriter Tony Kushner looked on. According to Zegler, Beymer said "Te adoro María" to her "over and over again" as they embraced.


title: Richard Beymer

text: In the early 2000s Beymer was already making documentaries. One entitled "Whatever Happened to Richard Beymer?", which chronicled his obsession with photography throughout his life, was screened at the 2002 Twin Peaks Festival in Seattle.


title: Richard Beymer

text: He was in "Sadie's Waltz" (2008) then focused on directing documentaries: "The Passing of a Saint" (2010), "It's a Beautiful World" (2014), "Richard Beymer's Before... the Big Bang" (2016), "I Had Bad Milk in Dehradun" (2017), and "Behind the Red Curtain" (2017).


title: Richard Beymer

text: The avant-garde film "The Innerview", which he directed, produced, wrote the screenplay for and edited, won the Josef von Sternberg Award at the Mannheim-Heidelberg International Filmfestival in 1974. His 2010 film, "The Passing of a Saint", chronicles the funeral rites of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In April 2014 his film of a trip to India with David Lynch, "It's a Beautiful World", was released.


title: Richard Beymer

text: In 2007 Beymer completed his first book, a self-published novel, "Impostor: Or Whatever Happened to Richard Beymer?", a semi-autobiographical account of a young actor's struggle to find himself.


title: Richard Beymer

text: Beymer's photographs of "Twin Peaks" cast and crew were featured in the gallery of behind the scenes photos on the Definitive Gold Box Edition for "Twin Peaks", released on October 30, 2007. He is also a painter and sculptor.


title: Richard Beymer

text: As of 2010, Beymer resided in Fairfield, Iowa, where he continued to make films and to write, sculpt, and paint. He practices Transcendental Meditation, to "cool out".


title: Alice Liddell

text: Alice Pleasance Hargreaves ("née" Liddell, ; 4 May 1852 – 16 November 1934), was an English woman who, in her childhood, was an acquaintance and photography subject of Lewis Carroll. One of the stories he told her during a boating trip became the children's classic 1865 novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". She shared her name with "Alice", the heroine of the story, but scholars disagree about the extent to which the character was based upon her.


title: Alice Liddell

text: Alice Liddell was the fourth of the ten children of Henry Liddell, ecclesiastical dean of Christ Church, Oxford, one of the editors of "A Greek-English Lexicon", and his wife Lorina Hanna Liddell ("née" Reeve). She had two older brothers, Harry (born 1847) and Arthur (1850–53), an older sister Lorina (born 1849), and six younger siblings, including her sister Edith (born 1854) to whom she was very close and her brother Frederick (born 1865), who became a lawyer and senior civil servant.


title: Alice Liddell

text: At the time of her birth, her father was the Headmaster of Westminster School but was soon after appointed to the deanery of Christ Church, Oxford. The Liddell family moved to Oxford in 1856. Soon after this move, Alice met Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll), who encountered the family while he was photographing the cathedral on 25 April 1856. He became a close friend of the Liddell family in subsequent years.


title: Alice Liddell

text: Alice was three years younger than Lorina and two years older than Edith, and the three sisters were constant childhood companions. She and her family regularly spent holidays at their holiday home Penmorfa, which later became the Gogarth Abbey Hotel, on the West Shore of Llandudno in North Wales.


title: Alice Liddell

text: When Alice Liddell was a young woman, she set out on a grand tour of Europe with Lorina and Edith. One story has it that she became a romantic interest of Prince Leopold, the youngest son of Queen Victoria, during the four years he spent at Christ Church, but the evidence for this is sparse. It is true that years later, Leopold named his first child Alice, and acted as godfather to Alice's second son Leopold. However, it is possible Alice was named in honour of Leopold's deceased elder sister instead, the Grand Duchess of Hesse. A recent biographer of Leopold suggests it is far more likely that Alice's sister Edith was the true recipient of Leopold's attention. Edith died on 26 June 1876, possibly of measles or peritonitis (accounts differ), shortly before she was to be married to Aubrey Harcourt, a cricket player. At her funeral on 30 June 1876, Prince Leopold served as a pall-bearer.


title: Alice Liddell

text: Alice Liddell married Reginald Hargreaves, also a cricketer, on 15 September 1880, at the age of 28 in Westminster Abbey. They had three sons: Alan Knyveton Hargreaves and Leopold Reginald "Rex" Hargreaves (both were killed in action in World War I); and Caryl Liddell Hargreaves, who survived to have a daughter of his own. Liddell denied that the name 'Caryl' was in any way associated with Charles Dodgson's pseudonym. Reginald Hargreaves inherited a considerable fortune, and was a local magistrate; he also played cricket for Hampshire. Alice became a noted society hostess and was the first president of Emery Down Women's Institute.


title: Alice Liddell

text: During World War I she joined the Red Cross as a volunteer, for which she was awarded a medal which is currently on display in the Museum of Oxford. Two of her sons would die during the war.


title: Alice Liddell

text: She took to referring to herself as "Lady Hargreaves", but there was no basis for such a title. After her husband's death in 1926, the cost of maintaining their home, Cuffnells, was such that she deemed it necessary to sell her copy of "Alice's Adventures under Ground" (Lewis Carroll's earlier title for "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"). The manuscript fetched £15,400 (), nearly four times the reserve price given to it by Sotheby's auction house. It later became the possession of Eldridge R. Johnson and was displayed at Columbia University on the centennial of Carroll's birth. Alice was present, aged 80, and it was on this visit to the United States that she met Peter Llewelyn Davies, one of the brothers who inspired J. M. Barrie's "Peter Pan". Upon Johnson's death, the book was purchased by a consortium of American bibliophiles and presented to the British people "in recognition of Britain's courage in facing Hitler". The manuscript is held by the British Library.


title: Alice Liddell

text: For most of her life, Alice lived in and around Lyndhurst in the New Forest, in the county of Hampshire.


title: Alice Liddell

text: After her death in 1934, her body was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium, with her ashes being buried in the graveyard of the church of St Michael and All Angels in Lyndhurst, Hampshire. A memorial plaque, naming her "Mrs. Reginald Hargreaves" can be seen in the picture in the monograph. Alice's mirror can be found on display at the New Forest Heritage Centre, Lyndhurst, a free museum sharing the history of the New Forest.


title: Alice Liddell

text: On 4 July 1862, in a rowing boat travelling on the Isis from Folly Bridge, Oxford, to Godstow for a picnic outing, 10-year-old Alice asked Charles Dodgson (who wrote under the pen name Lewis Carroll) to entertain her and her sisters, Edith (aged 8) and Lorina (13), with a story. As the Reverend Robinson Duckworth rowed the boat, Dodgson regaled the girls with fantastic stories of a girl, named Alice, and her adventures after she fell into a rabbit-hole. The story was not unlike those Dodgson had spun for the sisters before, but this time Liddell asked Mr. Dodgson to write it down for her. He promised to do so but did not get around to the task for some months. He eventually presented her with the manuscript of "Alice's Adventures Under Ground" in November 1864.


title: Alice Liddell

text: In the meantime, Dodgson had decided to rewrite the story as a possible commercial venture. Probably with a view to canvassing his opinion, Dodgson sent the manuscript of "Under Ground" to a friend, the author George MacDonald, in the spring of 1863. The MacDonald children read the story and loved it, and this response probably persuaded Dodgson to seek a publisher. "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland", with illustrations by John Tenniel, was published in 1865, under the name Lewis Carroll. A second book about the character Alice, "Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There", followed in 1871. In 1886, a facsimile of "Alice's Adventures Under Ground", the original manuscript that Dodgson had given Liddell, was published.


title: Alice Liddell

text: The relationship between Liddell and Dodgson has been the source of much controversy. Dodgson met the Liddell family in 1855; he first befriended Harry, the older brother, and later took both Harry and Ina on several boating trips and picnics to the scenic areas around Oxford. Later, when Harry went to school, Alice and her younger sister Edith joined the party. Dodgson entertained the children by telling them fantastic stories to while away the time. He also used them as subjects for his hobby, photography. It has often been stated that Alice was clearly his favourite subject in these years, but there is very little evidence to suggest that this is so; Dodgson's diaries from 18 April 1858 to 8 May 1862 are missing.


title: Alice Liddell

text: The relationship between the Liddells and Dodgson suffered a sudden break in June 1863. There was no record of why the rift occurred, since the Liddells never openly spoke of it, and the single page in Dodgson's diary recording 27–29 June 1863 (which seems to cover the period in which it began) was missing; it has been speculated by biographers such as Morton N. Cohen that Dodgson may have wanted to marry the 11-year-old Alice Liddell, and that this was the cause of the unexplained break with the family in June 1863. Alice Liddell's biographer, Anne Clark, writes that Alice's descendants were under the impression that Dodgson wanted to marry her, but that "Alice's parents expected a much better match for her." Clark argues that in Victorian England such arrangements were not as improbable as they might seem; John Ruskin, for example, fell in love with a 12-year-old girl while Dodgson's younger brother sought to marry a 14-year-old, but postponed the wedding for six years.


title: Alice Liddell

text: In 1996, Karoline Leach found what became known as the "Cut pages in diary" document—a note allegedly written by Charles Dodgson's niece, Violet Dodgson, summarising the missing page from 27–29 June 1863, apparently written before she (or her sister Menella) removed the page. The note reads:


title: Alice Liddell

text: This might imply that the break between Dodgson and the Liddell family was caused by concern over alleged gossip linking Dodgson to the family governess and to "Ina" (Alice's older sister, Lorina). In her biography, "The Mystery of Lewis Carroll," Jenny Woolf suggests that the problem was caused by Lorina becoming too attached to Dodgson and not the other way around. Woolf then uses this theory to explain why "Menella [would] "remove the page itself, yet keep a note of what was on it."" The note, she submits, is a "censored version" of what really happened, intended to prevent Lorina from being offended or humiliated at having her feelings for Dodgson made public.


title: Alice Liddell

text: It is uncertain who wrote the note. Leach has said that the handwriting on the front of the document most closely resembles that of either Menella or Violet Dodgson, Dodgson's nieces. However, Morton N. Cohen in an article published in the "Times Literary Supplement" in 2003 said that in the 1960s, Dodgson's great-nephew Philip Dodgson Jacques told him that Jacques had written the note himself based on conversations he remembered with Dodgson's nieces. Cohen's article offered no evidence to support this, however, and known samples of Jacques' handwriting do not seem to resemble the writing of the note.


title: Alice Liddell

text: After this incident, Dodgson avoided the Liddell home for six months but eventually returned for a visit in December 1863. However, the former closeness does not seem to have been re-established, and the friendship gradually faded away, possibly because Dodgson was in opposition to Dean Liddell over college politics.


title: Alice Liddell

text: The extent to which Dodgson's "Alice" may be or could be identified with Liddell is controversial. The two Alices are clearly not identical, and though it was long assumed that the fictional Alice was based very heavily on Liddell, recent research has contradicted this assumption. Dodgson himself claimed in later years that his Alice was entirely imaginary and not based upon any real child at all.


title: Alice Liddell

text: There was a rumour that Dodgson sent Tenniel a photo of one of his other child-friends, Mary Hilton Badcock, suggesting that he used her as a model, but attempts to find documentary support for this theory have proved fruitless. Dodgson's own drawings of the character in the original manuscript of "Alice's Adventures Under Ground" show little resemblance to Liddell. Biographer Anne Clark suggests that Dodgson might have used Edith Liddell as a model for his drawings.


title: Alice Liddell

text: There are at least four direct links to Liddell in the two books. First, he set them on 4 May (Liddell's birthday) and 4 November (her "half-birthday"), and in "Through the Looking-Glass" the fictional Alice declares that her age is "seven and a half exactly", the same as Liddell on that date. Second, he dedicated them "to Alice Pleasance Liddell". Third, in the first book, the Dormouse tells a story which begins, "Once upon a time there were three little sisters... and their names were Elsie, Lacie, and Tillie." The name Liddell was pronounced with the accent on the first syllable and would sound like "little" as spoken with the "T" sound softened. Also the name "Lacie" is an anagram of "Alice", whilst 'Elsie' refers to Lorina, whose second name was Charlotte, giving her the initials L.C. 'Tillie' refers to Edith's family nickname of 'Matilda'.


title: Alice Liddell

text: Fourth, there is an acrostic poem at the end of "Through the Looking-Glass". Reading downward, taking the first letter of each line, spells out Liddell's full name. The poem has no title in "Through the Looking-Glass", but is usually referred to by its first line, "A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky".


title: Alice Liddell

text: In addition, all of those who participated in the Thames boating expedition where the story was originally told (Carroll, Duckworth and the three Liddell sisters) appear in the chapter "A Caucus-Race and a Long Tale" – but only if Alice Liddell is represented by Alice herself.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Hurricane Andrew was a very powerful and destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in August 1992. It is the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures damaged or destroyed, and remained the costliest in financial terms until Hurricane Irma surpassed it 25 years later. Andrew was also the strongest landfalling hurricane in the United States in decades and the costliest hurricane to strike anywhere in the country, until it was surpassed by Katrina in 2005. In addition, Andrew is one of only four tropical cyclones to make landfall in the continental United States as a Category 5, alongside the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, 1969's Camille, and 2018's Michael. While the storm also caused major damage in the Bahamas and Louisiana, the greatest impact was felt in South Florida, where the storm made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane, with 1-minute sustained wind speeds as high as 165 mph (265 km/h) and a gust as high as . Passing directly through the city of Homestead in Dade County (now known as Miami-Dade County), the hurricane stripped many homes of all but their concrete foundations. In total, Andrew destroyed more than 63,500 houses, damaged more than 124,000 others, caused $27.3 billion in damage (equivalent to $ billion in ), and left 65 people dead.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Andrew began as a tropical depression over the eastern Atlantic Ocean on August 16. After spending a week without significantly strengthening itself in the central Atlantic, the storm rapidly intensified into a powerful Category 5 hurricane while moving westward towards the Bahamas on August 23. Though Andrew briefly weakened to Category 4 status while traversing the Bahamas, it regained Category 5 intensity before making landfall in Florida on Elliott Key and then Homestead on August 24. With a barometric pressure of at the time of landfall in Florida, Andrew is the sixth most-intense hurricane to strike the United States. Several hours later, the hurricane emerged over the Gulf of Mexico at Category 4 strength, with the Gulf Coast of the United States in its dangerous path. After turning northwestward and weakening further, Andrew moved ashore near Morgan City, Louisiana, as a low-end Category 3 storm. The small hurricane curved northeastward after landfall and rapidly lost its intensity, becoming extratropical on August 28, and merging with a frontal system over the southern Appalachian Mountains on August 29.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Andrew first inflicted structural damage as it moved through the Bahamas, especially in Cat Cays, lashing the islands with storm surge, hurricane-force winds, and tornadoes. About 800 houses were destroyed in the archipelago, and there was substantial damage to the transport, water, sanitation, agriculture, and fishing sectors. Andrew left four dead and $250 million in damage throughout the Bahamas. In parts of southern Florida, Andrew produced severe winds; a wind gust of 177 mph (282 km/h) was observed at a house in Perrine. The cities of Florida City, Homestead, Cutler Ridge, and parts of Kendall received the brunt of Andrew. As many as 1.4 million people lost power at the height of the storm; some for more than one month. In the Everglades, 70,000 acres (280 km) of trees were downed, while invasive Burmese pythons began inhabiting the region after a nearby facility housing them was destroyed. Though Andrew was moving fast, rainfall in Florida was substantial in a few areas (less in others); the rainfall peaked at 13.98 inches (355 mm) in western Dade County. Andrew was considered a "dry hurricane" by multiple media networks. In Florida, Andrew killed 44 and left a then-record $25 billion in damage.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Prior to making landfall in Louisiana on August 26, Andrew caused extensive damage to oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, leading to $500 million in losses for oil companies. It produced hurricane-force winds along its path through Louisiana, damaging large stretches of power lines that left about 230,000 people without electricity. Over 80% of trees in the Atchafalaya River basin were downed, and the agriculture there was devastated. Throughout the basin and Bayou Lafourche, 187 million freshwater fish were killed in the hurricane. With 23,000 houses damaged, 985 others destroyed, and 1,951 mobile homes demolished, property losses in Louisiana exceeded $1.5 billion. The hurricane caused the deaths of 17 people in the state, 6 of whom drowned offshore. Andrew spawned at least 28 tornadoes along the Gulf Coast, especially in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. In total, Andrew left 65 dead and caused $27.3 billion in damage. Andrew is currently the eighth-costliest Atlantic hurricane to hit the United States, behind only Katrina (2005), Ike (2008), Sandy (2012), Harvey (2017), Irma (2017), Maria (2017), and Ida (2021) as well as the ninth-costliest Atlantic hurricane, behind the aforementioned systems and Wilma (2005). The storm is the third-strongest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland by wind speed (165 mph; 265 km/h).


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: A tropical wave moved off the west coast of Africa on August 14. A ridge of high pressure to its north caused the wave to move quickly westward. An area of convection developed along the wave axis to the south of the Cape Verde islands, and on August 15, meteorologists began classifying the system with the Dvorak technique. The thunderstorm activity became more concentrated, and narrow spiral rainbands began to develop around a center of circulation. It is estimated that Tropical Depression Three developed late on August 16, about east-southeast of Barbados. Embedded within the deep easterlies, the depression tracked west-northwestward at . Initially, moderate wind shear prevented strengthening, until a decrease in shear allowed the depression to intensify into Tropical Storm Andrew at 12:00 UTC on August 17.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: By early August 18, the storm maintained convection near the center with spiral bands to its west as the winds increased to . Shortly thereafter, the storm began weakening because of increased southwesterly wind shear from an upper-level low. On August 19, a Hurricane Hunters flight into the storm failed to locate a well-defined center and on the following day, a flight found that the cyclone had degenerated to the extent that only a diffuse low-level circulation center remained; observations indicated the barometric pressure rose to an unusually high . The flight indicated that Andrew maintained a vigorous circulation aloft. After the upper-level low weakened and split into a trough, the wind shear decreased over the storm. A strong high pressure system then developed over the southeastern United States, which built eastward and caused Andrew to turn to the west. Convection became more organized as upper-level outflow became better established. An eye formed, and Andrew attained hurricane status early on August 22, about east-southeast of Nassau, Bahamas. In the forecast issued six hours after becoming a hurricane, the cyclone was predicted to make landfall near Jupiter, Florida, with winds of 105 mph (170 km/h) on August 25. This underestimated both the strength and the speed of the storm, which would eventually make landfall in South Florida.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: The hurricane accelerated westward into an area of highly favorable conditions, and began to rapidly intensify late on August 22; in a 24‑hour period the atmospheric pressure dropped by to a minimum of . On August 23, the storm attained Category 5 status on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale, reaching peak winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) a short distance off Eleuthera island in the Bahamas at 18:00 UTC. Despite its intensity, Andrew was a small tropical cyclone, with winds of extending out only about 90 mi (150 km) from the center. After reaching that intensity, the hurricane underwent an eyewall replacement cycle. At 21:00 UTC on August 23, Andrew made landfall on Eleuthera as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds of . The cyclone weakened further while crossing the Bahama Banks, and at 01:00 UTC on August 24, Andrew hit the southern Berry Islands of the Bahamas as a Category 4 hurricane, with winds of . As it crossed over the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, the hurricane rapidly re-intensified as the eye decreased in size and its eyewall convection deepened. At 08:40 UTC on August 24, Andrew struck Elliott Key as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds of and a pressure of . About 25 minutes after its first Florida landfall, Andrew made another landfall just northeast of Homestead, with a slightly lower pressure of . This barometric pressure made Andrew the most intense hurricane to strike the United States since Hurricane Camille in 1969 and the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in Florida since the Labor Day hurricane of 1935. The United States would not experience another landfall from a hurricane at Category 5 intensity until Hurricane Michael in 2018.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: As the eye moved onshore in Florida, the convection in the eyewall strengthened due to increased convergence, and Hurricane Hunters reported a warmer eyewall temperature than two hours prior. However, Andrew weakened as it continued further inland, and after crossing southern Florida in four hours, the storm emerged into the Gulf of Mexico with winds of 130 mph (210 km/h). In the Gulf of Mexico, the eye remained well-defined as the hurricane turned to the west-northwest, a change due to the weakening of the ridge to its north. Andrew steadily re-intensified over the Gulf of Mexico, reaching winds of 145 mph (235 km/h) late on August 25. As the high pressure system to its north weakened, a strong mid-latitude trough approached the area from the northwest. This caused the hurricane to decelerate to the northwest, and winds decreased as Andrew approached the Gulf Coast of the United States.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: At 08:30 UTC on August 26, the cyclone made landfall about 20 mi (30 km) west-southwest of Morgan City, Louisiana, with winds of . Andrew weakened rapidly as it turned to the north and northeast, falling to tropical storm intensity within 10 hours. After entering Mississippi, the cyclone deteriorated to tropical depression status early on August 27. Accelerating northeastward, the depression began merging with the approaching frontal system, and by midday on August 28, Andrew had lost its tropical identity while located over the southern Appalachian Mountains. The storm's remnants continued moving towards the northeast, fully merging with the remnants of Hurricane Lester and the frontal zone over the Mid-Atlantic, in Pennsylvania, on August 29.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Post-analysis on Andrew revealed that the storm was often stronger than operationally reported between early on August 22 and early on August 26. In real time, the National Hurricane Center assessed its peak intensity as , which was upgraded to 155 mph (250 km/h) in a post-storm analysis after the season ended. However, a 2004 paper by Christopher Landsea and others concluded that Andrew became a Category 5 hurricane near the Bahamas on August 23 and reached maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (280 km/h). The paper also indicated that Andrew briefly re-intensified into a Category 5 hurricane around the time of landfall in South Florida early on August 24. The storm was found to have been slightly stronger than originally assessed while approaching Louisiana, but the landfall winds were decreased from 120 mph (195 km/h) to 115 mph (185 km/h).


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, who took office while the storm was active, urged residents to "take this hurricane seriously". Before the hurricane passed through the Bahamas, forecasters predicted a storm surge of up to , as well as up to of rain. On August 22, hurricane watches were issued from Andros and Eleuthera islands northward through Grand Bahama and Great Abaco. They were upgraded to hurricane warnings later that day, and on August 23, additional warnings were issued for the central Bahamas, including Cat Island, Exuma, San Salvador Island, and Long Island, Bahamas. All watches and warnings were discontinued on August 24. Advance warning was credited for the low death toll in the country. A total of 58 shelters were opened at churches, government buildings, and schools.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Initially, forecasters predicted tides up to above normal along the east coast of Florida, near the potential location of landfall. Rainfall was projected to be between along the path of the storm. In addition, the National Hurricane Center noted the likelihood of isolated tornadoes in Central and South Florida during the passage of Andrew on August 23 and 24. Several tropical storm and hurricane warnings were issued for much of Central and South Florida, from Titusville on the east coast to Venice on the west coast. Included in the warnings were Lake Okeechobee and all of the Florida Keys. By 18:00 UTC on August 24, all watches and warnings issued were discontinued after Andrew progressed into the Gulf of Mexico.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Governor Lawton Chiles declared a state of emergency and activated about one-third of the Florida National Guard. Many residents evacuated, most voluntarily, from Broward, Charlotte, Collier, Lee, Martin, Dade, Monroe, Palm Beach, and Sarasota counties. A total of 142 shelters opened in these counties and collectively housed at least 84,340 people. In Dade County alone, 515,670 people were ordered to evacuate. As Andrew was approaching, an estimated 20,000–30,000 tourists were in the Florida Keys (Monroe County). Overall, almost 1.2 million people evacuated, which contributed to the low number of fatalities, despite the intensity of the storm. Many evacuees also checked into hotels, with rooms completely booked as far north as Ocala. Ultimately, the sheer number of evacuees led to likely the largest traffic jam in the history of Florida, mostly along Interstate 95. United States Coast Guard vessels on or near the Florida coastline were either secured onshore or sent to ride out the storm at sea. Government offices and public and private schools were closed from Monroe County northward to St. Lucie County. Many colleges and universities in southeast Florida also closed. Major airports such as the Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood, Key West, Miami, and Palm Beach international airports closed.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Shortly after the storm emerged into the Gulf of Mexico from southern Florida, the National Hurricane Center issued hurricane watches and warnings for the Gulf Coast of the United States beginning at 13:00 UTC on August 24. After the initial hurricane watch from Mobile, Alabama, to Sabine Pass, Texas, the watches and warnings were expanded to eventually include areas from Mobile, Alabama, to Freeport, Texas. All watches and warnings on the Gulf Coast were discontinued late on August 26 after the hurricane moved inland over Louisiana.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Due to the hurricane's threat, workers fled oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, while the Coast Guard moved their boats inland. Officials in Mississippi suggested that about 100,000 people evacuate the coastal counties. Shelters were opened in Hancock and Harrison counties, though only 68 people went to a shelter in the former. Gambling ships were moved into harbors and inland canals. Two run-offs for special legislative elections scheduled for August 25 were postponed.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: In Louisiana, Governor Edwin Edwards declared a state of emergency. About 1.25 million people evacuated from the central and southeast Louisiana, while approximately 60,000 others fled parishes in southwest Louisiana. A mandatory evacuation from Grand Isle was ordered by Mayor Andy Valence and the city council. In New Orleans, Mayor Sidney Barthelemy ordered the evacuation of about 200,000 residents in the low-lying areas of the city. Nine shelters were opened in the city, which were occupied by thousands of people. In response to computer simulations showing that storm surge from a tropical cyclone like Hurricane Andrew could over-top the levees, workers closed 111 floodgates. The New Orleans International Airport closed, with jumbo jets being flown to other airports. A total of 250 members of the Louisiana National Guard patrolled the streets during the storm. The Red Cross assisted with opening a shelter at the University of Southwest Louisiana's Cajundome in Lafayette, equipped to handle about 2,000 people.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: In Texas, about 250,000 people evacuated Orange and Jefferson counties. Galveston City Manager Doug Matthews advised residents to develop an evacuation plan in case the city chose to call for evacuations. The city later decided against ordering an evacuation. School was canceled on August 25 for Beaumont, Port Arthur, and other areas of central Jefferson County, while schools were closed in Dickinson, High Island, Hitchcock, La Marque, Santa Fe, and Texas City on August 26. College of the Mainland, Galveston College, and Texas A&M University at Galveston were also closed. Emergency management crews in Corpus Christi began testing emergency generators and severe weather gear. The Comal County chapter of the Red Cross placed their disaster alert teams on standby and ready to respond if the hurricane threatened the Corpus Christi area.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Even though Andrew was a small tropical cyclone for most of its lifespan, it caused extreme damage, especially in the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana. The vast majority of the damage was as a result of extremely high winds, although a few tornadoes spawned by Andrew caused considerable damage in Louisiana. Throughout the areas affected, almost 177,000 people were left homeless. Outside of the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana, effects were widespread, although damage was minimal. Overall, $27.3 billion in losses and 65 fatalities were attributed to Andrew, although many other estimates range as high as $36 billion. Andrew was the costliest hurricane in U.S. history at the time, but is now seventh following hurricanes Katrina (2005), Ike (2008), Sandy (2012), Harvey (2017), Irma (2017), and Maria (2017).


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: In the Bahamas, Andrew produced hurricane-force winds in North Eleuthera, New Providence, North Andros, Bimini, and the Berry Islands. The storm first struck North Eleuthera, where it produced a high storm surge. At a small village in the northwestern portion of the island, more than half of the houses were destroyed and the rest of the buildings sustained minor to major damage. One person drowned from the surge in Lower Bogue, Eleuthera, and two others died in The Bluff. On Current Island, the hurricane destroyed 24 of the 30 houses. Harbour Island, near Eleuthera, reported wind gusts of – the strongest gust speed observed in the Bahamas during Andrew's passage. News reports indicated severe damage to 36 houses on Harbor Island.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Andrew produced several tornadoes in the area. At the capital city of Nassau, sustained winds reached , while gusts up to were reported. Only minor damage occurred in Nassau, according to the Bahamas Red Cross, but on the private island of Cat Cay, many expensive homes sustained heavy damage. Much of the northwestern Bahamas received damage, with estimated monetary losses reaching $250 million. A total of 800 houses were destroyed, leaving 1,700 people homeless. Additionally, the storm caused severe damage to the sectors of transport, communications, water, sanitation, agriculture, and fishing. Four deaths in the country were attributed to the hurricane, of which three were direct; the indirect fatality was due to heart failure during the passage of the storm.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Overall, Andrew caused about $25.3 billion in damage in Florida, making it the costliest hurricane to hit the state at the time. Some estimates in Florida put the damage as high as $34 billion (1992 USD, $  USD). Almost all of the damage in Florida was caused by strong winds, rather than storm surge or flooding that is often associated with a major hurricane. Of the 44 deaths attributed to the storm, 15 were direct fatalities, while 29 were indirectly caused by the storm. It was later noted that if Andrew had been slightly larger or made landfall a few miles further north, it would have significantly affected Miami and Fort Lauderdale, which would have resulted in an even higher damage and death toll. An analysis by the American Meteorological Society indicated that unlike most hurricanes, wind damage from Andrew was mostly north of the geometric center and occurred primarily on the eastern edge of the storm. Some officials in Florida considered Andrew the worst storm in the state since the Labor Day hurricane in 1935. But most others (particularly the media, former National Hurricane Center director Max Mayfield) in retrospect stated that Andrew was hardly "The Big One", but still very devastating.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: The storm surge from Andrew was very limited in its overall coverage due the compactness of the hurricane, although it caused between $96 million and more than $500 million in losses to boats and buildings, based on various sources. At the height of the storm, more than 1.4 million people lost electricity and another 150,000 were without telephone service. It is estimated that throughout Florida, the storm damaged 101,241 homes and destroyed approximately 63,000 others – the vast majority in Dade County – with about 175,000 people rendered homeless. Smaller tropical cyclones like Andrew or Charley tend to produce less overall coverages and damages from the storm surge, in contrast to hurricanes such as Hugo, Ike, Ivan, and Katrina. In addition to homes, the storm damaged or destroyed 82,000 businesses, of farmland, 31 public schools, 59 health facilities/hospitals, 9,500 traffic signals, of power lines, and 3,000 watermains. Approximately 20 million cubic yards (15 million m) of debris left by the storm were disposed of.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Tides were generally between above normal in the Biscayne Bay area, though near the Burger King International Headquarters, tides reached as high as above normal. Storm surge on the west coast was widespread but generally light, with a peak height of in Everglades City and Goodland. Strong winds from the storm were confined to a relatively small area, stretching from Key Largo to the Miami Beach area. A house near Perrine initially reported a wind gust of before the structure and instrument were destroyed; this measurement was reduced to , after wind-tunnel testing at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University of the same type of anemometer revealed a 16.5% error. Several other anemometers measuring the highest wind speeds on land were destroyed or failed. At the National Hurricane Center building in Coral Gables, sustained winds of and gusts to were measured before the anemometer failed. The highest sustained wind speed for the storm was , recorded at the Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station, before instruments also failed there. In Key Largo, a 13-minute wind speed of was reported. Tropical storm force winds reached as far north as West Palm Beach. On the west coast of Florida, sustained winds remained just below tropical storm force on Marco Island, though a wind gust of was reported in Collier County. Rainfall was generally light, possibly as a result of the storm's relatively fast movement. Overall, precipitation from Andrew peaked at nearly in western Dade County. Heavy rainfall in other areas was sporadic, with precipitation reported as far north as Central Florida.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Although effects from Andrew were catastrophic, the extent of damage was limited mainly from Kendall to Key Largo due to the small wind field of the storm. The hurricane destroyed 90% of mobile homes in the county, including 99% of mobile homes in Homestead. At the Homestead Air Force Base, most of the 2,000 buildings on the base were severely damaged or rendered unusable. Damage to the base was extensive enough that it was recommended for closure. Nearby, in the small town of Florida City, over 120 homes were demolished and 700 others were damaged, while a number of other buildings were damaged beyond repair, including City Hall. Further north, damage to poorly constructed homes in communities such as Country Walk and Saga Bay resembled that of an F3 tornado. Winds in the area were estimated to have ranged from , slightly below the threshold for an F3 tornado. Four of the five condominiums at Naranja Lakes were destroyed. The Cutler Ridge Mall suffered severe wind and water damage; after the storm, significant looting was reported at that location. More than 50 streets were blocked by fallen trees and power lines. Agriculture suffered extensively as well, with an 85% loss to fruit crops such as avocados, limes, and mangoes. Crop damage in Dade County totaled about $509 million. The county suffered the vast majority of the damage from the hurricane, totaling approximately $25 billion. Andrew left at least 40 deaths in the county, 15 direct and 25 indirect.


title: Hurricane Andrew

text: Elsewhere, effects were relatively minimal, except in Broward, Monroe, and Collier counties. In Broward County, on the north side of the storm's path, damage in several municipalities was primarily limited to downed trees, several of which fell onto roads and power lines. In Pembroke Park, one of the worst affected cities in the county, approximately 260 mobile homes were damaged. Storm surge left coastal flooding in some areas, especially along state roads A1A and 858. Property damage reached about $100 million and three fatalities were reported in Broward County. In Everglades National Park and Biscayne National Park, more than 25% of trees were damaged or destroyed, including one-fourth of the royal palms and one-third of the pine trees in the former. In addition to the damage at Everglades National Park, effects in Monroe County were significant, especially in the Upper Florida Keys. Strong winds damaged billboards, awnings, commercial signs, several boats, planes, trees, and 1,500 homes, with 300 of those becoming uninhabitable. Damage in that county was about $131 million. In Collier County, to the north of the storm's path, sustained winds up to were observed in Chokoloskee. Storm surge flooded low-lying areas, particularly in Goodland, Everglades City, and Marco Island. Many boats were damaged or destroyed by the rough seas and strong winds. The storm destroyed 80 mobile homes and severely damaged 400 others. Property damage in the county reached about $30 million.