Way to go Disney’s Animal Care Team! This group of dedicated Cast Members once again recently earned their Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Accreditation for Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. Check out the details below as shared by Dr. Penning on DisneyParksBlog:
As I shared recently, even though Walt Disney World Resort is temporarily closed, Disney’s Animals, Science and Environment Cast Members are continuing to provide the best care for our animals. Our team includes experts in animal care, nutrition, veterinary care, conservation, science, and education programs – and all have a special bond to the work they do.
The team develops new forms of enrichment for our lions based on food textures and scents, trains animals to participate in their own medical care, feeds fresh lettuce to hippos and places browse (leafy branches) up high for giraffes. Those are just some of the ways the animal care team goes above and beyond to establish strong relationships with the animals and help maintain their health and well-being.
These efforts have not gone unnoticed. Because of this team’s dedication and hard work, Disney is a recognized leader in animal care and conservation. Most recently, that recognition included Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge once again earning accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
AZA accreditation is the gold standard in animal care, and I’m incredibly proud of the entire Animals, Science and Environment Team for earning this stellar accomplishment.
Our team is also passionate about conservation. In partnership with the Disney Conservation Fund, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this month, we’re working to help save wildlife, inspire action and protect the planet. Those efforts support nonprofit organizations and the health of hundreds of species, like the Grauer’s gorilla.
I’m so grateful for our ASE team, and I look forward to sharing more stories about the #DisneyMagicofNature.
Imagineer Joe Rohde has been taking Disney fans on an online digial tour of Disney’s Animal Kingdom through his Instagram, providing deep backstory on its ethos and culture. He’s discussed the Tree of Life and Africa, and today we follow him through Asia as he discusses the beautiful Anandapur and Maharajah Jungle Trek!
“At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Asia really means South Asia and Southeast Asia, where you find Tigers….We have styled the entire thing as The Kingdom of Anandapur. It’s something like India something like Nepal and something like parts of Indonesia.
As with Africa, we want everyone to have a sense of going on an adventure, so even if you were from India, you walk around here going “I haven’t been to this part of the country”… A purist could criticize this as being kind of expropriation and amalgamation, but we try to be careful and we really do want to transcend any particular country and stick with the idea of animals and the people they live with.
“It’s important to remember that all of these lands are fictional. And because they are fictional, they have been edited and focused in an artificial way….
Our Asia is focused on the harmony and disharmony of use of space. Habitat competition vs accommodation. The tigers live in an abandoned hunting lodge. The white water raft trip goes through an illegally logged Forest. The train in Expedition Everest cuts through a forbidden part of the mountains. The Gibbons and Siamangs live right in the middle of town amidst ruins under restoration. This is a bit of design hyperbole, but it’s meant to indicate this idea of humans and animals living cheek by jowl in the same spaces.”
“This was inspired by multiple sources. One was Sigiriya in SriLanka where there is a truly huge set of claws left over from a giant lion. One is Mahabalipuram in India where there are colossal stone animals. The other is at Angkor Wat, colossal human sculptures in ruins with roots overgrown.
Ours is a tiger. So it could have been an old Hindu shrine of Dawon the tiger-lion who is variously ridden by Durga, Kali or Parvati. Or a Buddhist shrine to Padmasambhava who also rides a tiger. But it’s in ruins so we cannot tell.”
“In the queue for the Kali River Rapids attraction are murals on the ceiling depicting traditional Buddhist parables in which animals act out moral precepts. These are called the Jataka Tales. The ceiling of this building, indeed the entire building is loosely based on a building on the island of Bali called the Kerta Gosa. It too has a lavish painted ceiling with a very similar carved ornament at the very peak.
All the murals that you see in the building are original. They were painted by an old Balinese master painter. When we started the work, I brought him a full set of western watercolor brushes as a gift. He chose to paint all those murals with his traditional tools…Split pieces of bamboo which he cut with a knife and smashed to create a brush.”
Let’s head into the Maharajah Jungle Trek with Joe to look at, not only the animals, but the artistry…
“There are three distinct mural sequences in the Maharajah Jungle Trek. There are the tiger murals, which if you look closely reveal antique scenes of tiger hunts, making it clear that there used to be way more tigers. By the way, some of these shots are from inside the tiger area…when the tigers were not there. The second group in this sequence are the carved stone murals (real stone carved in Bali) representing a little moral tale in which man comes into the forest, cuts down the forest, and disaster follows. In the final frame the animals and the man have reconciled and nature begins to bloom again. The last set of murals are meant to depict the four great kings of Anandapur.”
“When we opened, we had Bengal tigers who had grown up together. I believe they were all sisters….. The Tigers you see today are Sumatran Tigers, which are an important Conservation challenge. For those who are concerned about where animals like these come from…Rest assured they are not captured in the wild. Ironically, there are almost none left in the wild. At any legitimate accredited Zoological facility, ours included, those animals are part of international networks committed to maintaining healthy and genetically Viable populations.
When we started conceptual work on Disney’s Animal Kingdom in 1990 estimates are there were as many as 100,000 tigers in the wild. Today there are maybe 3500….Thanks to global effort’s some tiger numbers are stabilizing. That doesn’t mean much unless we do a lot more to protect jungle habitat with enough animals in it for Tigers to eat.”
Join is soon in Part 4 as Joe take us all to the thrill of Asia – Expedition Everest!
Joe Rohde, Imagineer and creative force behind Animal Kingdom, has been taking Disney fans on a digital tour through some of his favorite areas of the park. Today, we showcase his thoughts on the African portion of the park including Harambe village, the Kilimanjaro Safaris, and the Gorilla Falls Nature Trail. Be sure to check out his Instagram for the full posts.
Joe starts us off with a little history on Harambe.
“None of our lands are supposed to be geopolitically real like say, Kenya. Harambe looks a lot like Lamu in Kenya, but not in a replicative way, and there are substantial stylistic departures. It’s more like a smash-up of Lamu-Kenya and Arusha-Tanzania. Both are a kind of mercantile border town, as is Harambe. The word Harambe means “let’s work together or pull together.” Implicitly on behalf of wildlife.
What can we read in this environment? Clearly multiple levels of history and conquest, as with Lamu. There’s a Portuguese fort, some remnants of Omani reign, a British Colonial era, and Independence in 1961. Must be a valuable place. The building are old and weathered, but not intended to look neglected, and there’s lots of evidence of reutilization and upcycling…from economic stress? So people are striving here. I mean, the municipal logo is a Maasai shield and an industrial gear with the word ”enterprise.”
In such a palpably commercial place, where people are clearly striving to get ahead, what is the value of elephants vs elephant ivory and rhinos vs rhino horn? This is what wildlife conservation is – a value equation. And the value at Disney’s Animal Kingdom is The intrinsic value of Nature as supreme and untradeable. However subtle and nuanced, that is conflict, which drives narrative.”
“The animals that you see on Safari represent the savanna ecosystem, but it would be extraordinary to see them all in one place or in one day. I’ve spent entire days on safari and seen almost nothing. And while there are many famous animals, there are also some rare animals that you might never see if you went on safari in Africa. Eland for example, are very shy and will not let you get within 1000 feet.”
[The safari} exists within a network of managed habitats stretching all around the world, which relate to each other in order to preserve the genetic pool of these animals, and in some cases, as we have done with White Rhinos, to re-introduce them to the wild.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom could not exist without the Disney Conservation Fund and it’s work out in the real world….I would never discourage someone from taking a real Safari trip to Africa. But I can assure you that the Safari that you might take here has certain advantages, and is not merely a show, it is a working environment engaged with the conservation of wild creatures.”
Now that we’re off our safari trek, let’s go with Joe over to Gorilla Falls!
“Gorilla Falls Nature Trail is a pedestrian experience into the jungles adjacent to our wildlife reserve….It features a family of lowland gorillas, which are sexy and impressive, yes, but I don’t know how often you’re ever going to get a chance to see an African Weaverbird make a nest, or ever see a naked mole rat, or a jacana. Because there is no ride system, people often undervalue these experiences.
But, at a place like Disney’s Animal Kingdom, where the best rewards come from slowing down and observing closely, the nature walks are some of the highest value for the investment that you can get. Data from zoos suggest that people spend an average of 30 seconds looking at an animal exhibit. That’s really not enough time. If you wait for mother nature, she will put on a show. But you have to wait.”
Again, make sure to check out Joe’s Instagram for his own pictures and full stories.
April is an exciting time at Disney’s Animal Kingdom! April celebrates Earth Month which of course means Disney gets wrapped up in the magic of nature! Even though we can’t be together in the parks this Earth Month, Disney is bringing the beauty of nature right into our homes. Check out the details below from DisneyParksBlog:
This Earth Month, we look to nature to bring hope and inspiration during these unprecedented times. Throughout April, we will be sharing the Magic of Nature with you and your family, unifying Disney fans and animal lovers, and inspiring environmental stewards to celebrate and draw magic from the incredible world around us.
Conservation and protecting the environment is an important priority across Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, and I’m proud that we put this philosophy into practice every day in the work that we do. From taking care of thousands of animals at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and across Walt Disney World Resort, to conserving water resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions and waste across our business, we constantly work to not only share, but protect the magic of nature.
Going into the 50th anniversary of Earth Day on April 22, I encourage you to take a moment to pause and reflect on our brilliant planet, appreciating all of its natural wonders. Whether it is learning something new about animals and ecosystems through Disney Magic Moments and NatGeo@Home, or simply admiring the world around us, we can all be inspired by our planet. And to help inspire this wonder and magic, I am thrilled to launch a new series, #AskDrMark, on my Instagram, @DrMarkAtDisney. I am so lucky to have an amazing team of really smart people who can help answer your burning questions and curiosities about wildlife and the environment.
Want to learn more about the work Disney is doing around the world to promote and protect the magic of nature? Check out some favorite Disney Parks Blog posts through the years:
With many of us at home, video conferencing has become a favorite way to connect with co-workers, classmates, friends and family. Now, you can add a touch of Disney magic to your online video chats with a new series of virtual backgrounds featuring Disney Parks locations from around the world. Check out the backgrounds and details below from DisneyParksBlog:
The virtual backgrounds allow you to get creative and transform the backdrop of your home office, living room or bedroom to a favorite location from our parks and resorts. Virtual backgrounds include:
It’s easy to add a Disney Parks background to your next video chat. Simply right-click on the image and save it to your computer. Then, follow the conferencing platform’s instructions to add Disney magic to your video conferencing.
