Mouse Extra

It is time for me to vent a bit.  There was only one thing in my recent 10 day trip to Walt Disney World that truly made me mad.  It happened last Monday when we all planned on going to the Animal Kingdom for “rope drop”.

The night before, I saw in my hotel that the Animal Kingdom was going to have an early Extra Magic Hour the next day.  So in response, we decided to go to that park and take advantage of the extra time to get on the “e-tickets” that tend to get crowded very quickly over there.  So I got my entire family out of bed before 7am, and they were not all thrilled about that to say the least, and headed over to the park.

We got there a few minutes after 8am, and as we walked towards the gate and through the bag check I noticed a significant line at the turnstile.  It seemed strange to me to even have a line, but what was even stranger was that as we got closer I noticed it wasn’t moving at all.  What could be happening?  There was a good crowd of people so we clearly weren’t the only ones coming for Extra Magic Hours.

Soon I realized the park was not yet open.  What was going on here?  It was only maybe five minutes after 8am.  All these people could not be here this early unless they also knew about the Extra Magic Hours.  I looked around for a cast member and noticed a man swamped with people and questions.  I made my way over and eavesdropped on his conversation with other guests.

He was apologizing and telling his angry customers that management had no idea it was supposed to be and Extra Magic Hour this morning.   Their schedules didn’t say this, and he didn’t know what to tell us.  All he could say was that management knew now of the problem and expectations.  SO I assumed they were scrambling to open as soon as possible.

But the hour crept by and crowds grew larger and larger.  At about 8:40 we were let threw the turnstiles only to wait the remaining twenty minutes in front of the Tree of Life.  Instead of an Extra Magic Hour of small lines and low crowds, we faced a completely packed park filled with ornery guests.  Disney did nothing to rectify the situation or even offer and apology of some sorts.  Only that one poor cast member swamped with angry resort guests ever offered a simple “sorry”.

What could they have done?  Perhaps nothing, but why did this happen?  How could such a terrible mistake be made?  Has this ever happened to you?

Many hardcore disney fans, myself included, always get a little disappointed when we see that dragon head at the entrance to the Animal Kingdom. For those of you who don’t know (and I am sure there are not many of you reading this that don’t), there was to be a land in the Animal Kingdom themed to mythical animals, like dragons and unicorns. It was to be built where Camp Minnie-Mickey currently sits. The Camp was supposed to be merely a temporary land until Asia was completed and construction of the Beastly Kingdomme could begin in earnest.  It seems the Disney execs felt another land was needed for the opening of the park to help with the anticipated heavy crowds so they threw together the idea of Camp Minnie Mickey on the fly.

But the Beastly Kingdomme was to be truly amazing. Here’s an early release from Disney as to what the land was to be:

“Beastly Kingdom is the realm of make believe animals, animals that don’t really exist, out of legends, out of fairy tales, out of storybooks. Like our legends and fair tales about imaginary animals, this land is divided into realms of good and realms of evil.

The evil side is dominated by DRAGON’S TOWER, a burned, wrecked castle inhabited by a greedy, fire breathing dragon. He hordes a fabulous treasure in his tower chamber. The castle is also inhabited by bats who speak to us from their upside down perches. The bats have a plan. They enlist our help trying to rob the dragon and fly us off on a wild chase. At last, we meet the fire-breathing dragon himself and barely escape un-barbecued.

The good side of this land is ruled by QUEST OF THE UNICORN. An adventure which sends us through a maze of medieval mythological creatures to seek the hidden grotto where the unicorn lives. There is also FANTASIA GARDENS. A gentle musical boat ride through the animals from Disney’s animated classic, “Fantasia.” Both the crocodiles and hippos from ” Dance of the Hours” and the Pegasus, fauns and centaurs from Beethoven’s “Pastoral” are found here.”

Other details have been rumored from its original concepts. It is thought that the bridge leading to the area was to be guarded by a troll underneath. There was to be a Mother Goose shop. Perhaps coolest of all, there was to be an outdoor eatery surrounding a small pond. Every so often faint bagpipes would be heard and the loch ness monster would surface from the center of the water.

Unfortunately, Disney execs wanted to make sure that Dinoland was there for the opening and before the Beastly Kingdomme could be built, the funds for it were pulled. But is it gone forever?

Maybe maybe not. The Beastly Kingdom seems to have taken over for Westcot as the project that could be announced at any moment. A few things seems to favor its possible construction. The park itself suffers from the stigma as a “half day” park. Whether or not its true, the park certainly suffers from a low number of single day ticket purchases. Disney continues to tinker with ways to increase these one day visitors. By increasing the number of attractions, the operating hours of the park could be increased going a long way to ending that stigma. Some dragons and unicorns could help.

The next question would then be the content of the area. Under current management philosophy, that seems unlikely. One rumor (which I wrote about awhile back) was the area was actually going to be redesigned into a Narnia land. I suppose if Prince Caspian becomes a hit that would be a possibility. Still, rumors are swirling in Tinseltown that Disney wants out of the Narnia business.

In this day of synergy and over pixarization, the original plans are a real breath of fresh air. Hopefully, Disney realizes this. Of course, the $300 million plus price tag for a Beastly Kingdomme as originally designed seems daunting. But who knows, Disney is ponying up over a billion to fix the California Adventure mess. And if the Wizarding World of Harry Potter starts to effect Disney attendance, they will do something. And then maybe we will get our dragon and unicorn after all.

 Today’s column is from Mike, contributing writer to Mouse Extra

Today we have our final installment of our tribute to Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s 10th anniversary by looking at the park’s wildest stars.  COntributing writer Mike takes to the high Himalayas to research one of the world’s most elusive animals.

Species: Yeti
Habitat: Mountains/Valleys of Nepal & Tibet
Status: Presumed Endangered
DAK Location: Expedition: Everest

The Yeti, often referred to in folklore and stories as the abominable snowman, can be found in the mountainous valleys of Nepal and Tibet. The animal’s name comes from a tibetan word, yeh-teh, meaning “rock bear.” Despite the name, the yeti is not related to the bear but is instead a primate. In fact, it is the largest primate, outweighing a male silverback by 50%. Also, unlike other primates except man, it walks upright.

We know very little about this elusive creature as it lives in one of the most remote, least populated regions of the planet. It was years before the first westerner actually saw one. Simliar to the mountain gorilla and okapi of the Congo, western science presumed the creature to be myth even though the local populace was well aware of its existence. One of the first westerners to see evidence of the animal was Lt. Col. Charles Howard-Bay in a trek to the region sponsored by the Royal Geographical Society. He saw only the tracks of the yeti. As thrill seekers from abroad continued to visit the area’s impressive mountains, more tracks were spotted. In 1953, Sir Edmond Hillary spotted footprints while climbing Everest. Shortly thereafter, another trip sponsored by the RGS actually spotted the creature at about 15,000 feet. The imposing mountains continue to draw climbers and visitors, but encounters still are rare.

The reasons for the rarity of these encounters stems from fact that the creature is rare in number and lives exclsuively in a remote area. The population is limited by the amount of food in its local habitat. As is typical in many primates, the creatures have large canines for demonstration purposes. They are mostly vegetarians but will occassionally eat carrion or small animals. To date, there have been no substaniated attacks on humans although there have been reports of the creature destroying property.

The primates generally live in the dense valley vegetation. When visual encounters do occur, the creature is usually attempting to cross mountain passages to get to the next valley. Still, the animal is often not seen. One defense mechanism of the creature is to crouch down and remain perfectly still. To snow leopards and mountain climbers, the yeti will look exactly like a large rock in the distance. There are many local tales of people walking along a mountain pass only to see a “boulder” leap up and run away.

As one would suspect, the yeti plays a key role in the mythology of the region. In some local cultures, the yeti is believed to be the ghost of someone who has recently died. Other cultures see the yeti as a demon who guards the mountains from trespassers. This, of course, contradicts recent studies showing the creature to be a vegetarian. For the longest time, the gorilla suffered from this misconception, as well. Confrontations between man and yeti have been very rare. As people continue to travel to the area, these will invariably increase. In all likelihood, there is nothing to fear from the animals despite their reputation as demonic protectors of the Himalayans, even though they seem to have a strange dislike for trains…

We continue our week long tribute to the 10th Anniversary of Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Earth Day by folowing contributing writer Mike to the African plains of Kilimanjaro Safaris.  Today he take a look up at the giraffes.

Species: Reticulated Giraffe
Habitat: African Savannah
Status: Low Risk
DAK Location: Kilamanjaroo Safari

The giraffe is one of the most recognizable animals on the planet with its height, huge neck, big eyes, and color patterns. The neck, reaching 6 feet in length, has the same number of vertebrae that humans have, seven. Of course, a giraffe’s neck bones are much larger, stretching over 10 inches in length. At eighteen feet, the giraffe is the tallest of all land animals. The back legs only look smaller than the front giving the animal a odd gait. Still, it can run up to 45 mph. Also, look closely and you will see that both legs on the same side move together, a rarity in the animal kingdom.

Everything about the giraffe is super-sized. The tongue is over 20 inches to help with eating leaves in tall trees. An adult may eat up to 75 pounds of grass and leaves. Like cows, giraffes are ruminants. That is, they chew their food and then regurgitate the partially digested foliage to chew again as grass and leaves are nutrient poor and difficult to digest. The heart in an effort to pump blood far from it can be 2 feet wide and weigh 25 pounds. The lungs can hold 12 gallons of air. At about eight feet, it also has the largest tail of any land animal.

Giraffes have a gestation period of about 14 months, giving birth to a single calf. The calf drops six feet, head first, at birth. Within hours the calves can run but still are potential prey for lions, hyenas and wild dogs. Healthy adults, however, are generally not hunted by anything other than a particulary aggressive and/or desperate pride of lions as giraffes are huge and powerful. Giraffes are often seen necking, but its nothing like the human version. Instead, two necking giraffes are actually males in combat over females.

Giraffes are hunted for thier pelts. It is believed that no two giraffes have the same color pattern. The distinctive coloration does provide camouflage particularly for calves hiding on the plains. They also suffer from habitat destruction. However, they are not considered endangered. There is an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 giraffes in Africa with the eastern and southern populations being the most stable.

Mike continues his week long tribute to the 10th anniversary of Disney’s Animal Kingdom by taking a look at the Africa’s white rhinos.

Species: White Rhinoceros
Habitat: Grasslands of Southern Africa
Status: Endangered
DAK Locale: Savannah East/Kilimanjaroo Safari

There are several different species of rhino found in Asia and Africa. The White Rhino is found at the Kilimanjaro Safari Ride - Savannah East. You will notice that the white rhino is one of the largest land mammals weighing in at nearly 4500 lbs., which is larger than its cousin, the Black rhino, also found at the attraction. Males are significantly larger than females but both sexes have the signature two horns. The white rhino got its name from a misinterptation of an Afrikaans word for “wide”, referring to the white rhino’s broad lip.

The rhino is famous on the safari circuit for being nearsighted, even occassionally charging jeeps that they mistake for other rhinos. The black rhino, the culprit behind these “attacks”, is the more aggressive species. The white rhino is much more docile and approachable. To see in front of themselves, they must look one eye at a time. A rhino’s olfactory passage is larger than their brains.

Rhinos are either grazers or browsers. As a grazer, the white rhino eats grasses and the like. They are often accompanied by oxpeckers, a bird that eats the insects off their skin. This symbiotic relationship is beneficial for both critters. Also, the rhino lacks sweat glands. This requires them to spend a lot of time in mud wallows to stay out of the heat and cool off.

The rhino reproduces at a very slow rate, a complicating factor in the efforts to save the species. White rhino females reproduce every 3 to 4 years giving birth to (generally) only one young after a 17 month gestation period. Rhinos across the world have been hunted to near extinction. Their horns are used for ceremonial daggers and is ground up into a powder for an aphrodisiac in China. Poachers often hack up off the horn leaving the rest of the carcass on the savannah. Currently, there are probably less than 15,000 white rhinos. The population worldwide has decreased about 90% since 1970 due to habitat loss and poaching. There are 2 populations of the white rhino, the northern and southern. Unfortunately, the northern subspecies found in the Congo nows numbers a mere 4 animals virtually guaranteeing its eventual extinction.

We continue our spotlight on Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s greatest and wildest stars for the parks 10th anniversary.  Today contirbuting wroter mike takes a look at the stars the paparrazzi chases the most at DAK, the African Elephant.

Species: African Elephant
Habitat: Sub-Sahara Africa
Status: Endangered
DAK Locale: Kilimanjaroo Safari

Elephants are one of the most popular zoo animals and the largest land mammal on Earth. These highly intelligent behemoths are unusual and impressive in appearance yet are seemingly gentle. Of course, what the public does not realize is that elephants kill or injure more zookeepers than any other animal. This stems from their incredinle strength more than any real aggression. Plus, elephants require more hands-on care by the keepers than just about any other type of critter. The massive African bulls are the most aggressive and can weigh up to 6 tons, with females topping the scales at about 4 tons.

One of the most frequently asked questions about elephants is whats the difference between the African and Asian types. The Africans are much larger with significantly bigger ears. There is a smaller forest type of the African species but at Disney’s Animal Kingdom we see the savannah kind. Elephants in general use their large ears as fans, but they also contain numerous blood vessels close to the skin to help the cooling process. The distinctive trunk is used for breathing, smelling and as an extra limb which can grab food with its nimble end. The animals have 4 useful teeth which are huge and grooved. These can only be replaced 6 times in their lives and many an old animal dies from starvation after losing its last set. This usually occurs around the 70th year. The famous tusks (unlike Asian elephants, both males and females have tusks in Africa) are actually incisor teeth.

The most endearing quality of the elephants is its family life, at least among the females. These groups are matriarchal, meaning a group is lead by the dominant female. The rest of the herd is comprised of other females and the young. Bulls are driven away once they reach puberty and live on thier own or in a bachelor herd until they get their own group. Males join herds only briefly to breed. Females reach maturity at about 14 years of age and give birth after a 22 month gestational period, that is, their pregancy lasts nearly 2 years. No wonder the boys take off (Just kidding). The calf is about 250 pounds at birth and will suckle for up to 2 years. A female gives birth every 4 years or so and usually has 3 or 4 young with her at any given time.

The family members stay in constant contact with one another. In fact, at the Bronx Zoo, it was recently discovered that the 2 seperate groups were consistently calling one another at other ends of the 250+ acre park. These calls were too low for the human ear to pick up. However, we can sometimes hear elephants call one another in a low gargling noise.

The famed legend of the elephant graveyard comes from the behavior of elephants greiving over the loss of a family member. Elephants have been known to bury their dead with leaves and twigs- a behavior only shared by man. The herd will sometimes spend days at the corpse of a dead elephant often touching and caressing the body. This was first recorded by the Roman writer, Pliny. In fact, it has been shown that elephants once back at the site of a long dead family member may caress the bones left behind. This may also account for its legendary memory in folklore.

Elephants eat a lot. The diet consists of a large variety of grasses, foliage, fruit and twigs. They eat all day and night. They can digest as much as 500 pounds of vegetation a day and can drink as much as 40 gallons of water at a time. Despite this, man has long domesticated the animals. The first domesticated elephants appear in accounts in India around 5500 BC. In fact, elephants have always played an important role in that culture’s unique mythology.

As we all know, the elephant is highly endangered. Hunting has been banned but, as Little Red can tell you, poaching is still a major problem, especially with the price of ivory being so high. Gamekeepers are now heavily armed in order to protect the herds from even heavier armed poachers. In Kenya alone, the population dropped from 150,000 to 30,000 in 10 years. During the 1980s, it is estimated that nearly half of Africa’s 1.2 million elephants were killed almost exclusively by poachers.