At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, we want to share compelling stories with our guests about as many different species as we can to inspire the conservation of wildlife and nature, so we’re especially excited when we can introduce a new animal species to the park. Now Disney’s Animal Kingdom guests have the opportunity to see springbok, a very interesting species of antelope, when they experience the Kilimanjaro Safaris and the Wild Africa Trek.
We’ve just begun the introduction of the springbok—six adult females and one five-month-old male calf—to our African savanna and thanks to vigilant attention from our animal care team, the springbok are adapting very well to their new habitat. The springbok join more than 300 other animals on the Kilimanjaro Safaris. Other kinds of antelope that guests might spot include the addax, bontebok, bongo, eland, greater kudu, sable antelope, scimitar-horned oryx and white-bearded wildebeest. These are joined by many other animals that are favorites of our guests, including the African elephant, African lion, black and white rhinoceros, giraffe, nile crocodile, ostrich, hippopotamus and zebra.
Did you know?
The name “springbok” is Afrikaans and Dutch (“spring” means “jump,” and “bok” means “antelope” or “goat”).
Springbok, which are found in southern Africa, are approximately 2.4 – 2.9 feet tall at the shoulder and weigh 70 – 100 lbs.
Male springbok are larger than females, and, although both males and females have horns, the males’ horns are thicker and longer.
Springbok can get the water they need from the food they eat, and they can survive without drinking water through the dry season, or even for years.
The springbok has a fold of skin that extends along the middle of its back to its tail and is lighter in color than the rest of its back. When the springbok is frightened by possible predators, the fold opens up and lifts so the lighter hair is displayed almost like a crest along the back.
The springbok displays a behavior called “pronking.” Pronking includes springing up repeatedly with legs stiff and close together, hooves bunched together, and back arched to show off the crest. While the exact cause of this behavior is unknown, springbok exhibit this activity when they are excited.
Springbok, as with all animals, rely heavily on their habitat for survival. Habitat destruction and over hunting threaten the species in the wild. You can help their populations from declining by supporting the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund www.disney.com/conservation and other conservation organizations that are working to protect African wildlife.
Sure looks like there’s a lot to do at Dino Institute, at least according to this helpful billboard. But what county is the institute located in? The name is blurred in the photo above – do you recall?
Today’s photo comes to us from Dinoland, U.S.A., at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. From this sign, it sure looks like this is the place to buy merchandise!
But what kind of deals do they have (blurred out in the sign above)? Leave your guess in the “Comments” section below and we’ll update the post later with the answer.
If you recall, young Russell from the film is a dedicated Wilderness Explorer who can’t wait to earn badges by having all kinds of adventures while learning about the world.
We’re happy to announce that the Wilderness Explorers adventure organization is coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, with a planned opening this spring. Soon, guests can become Wilderness Explorers and experience the entire park using their field guides, completing challenges and earning badges as they go. With more than 30 badges available, Wilderness Explorers is fun for the whole family and helps guests experience Disney’s Animal Kingdom and its themes in a new and exciting way.
Wildlife photography has always been a passion of mine. I was recently walking through Harambe Village early one morning after photographing gorillas inside Disney’s Animal Kingdom, when I was struck by the vast array of handmade items from Africa: hand-carved wood masks and animals, intricate beaded creations, beautiful woven baskets and so much more. Africa is one of the most fascinating and diverse countries I know of, and I stopped to capture some of the intriguing details, all the while being quietly transported to yet another paradise.
I hope these snapshots capture some of the beauty and history of this amazing place. I also included a gorilla photo from that morning.
Throughout the year, we’re very proud to share on the Disney Parks Blog stories about our conservation efforts and how we’re connecting families with animals and nature. Some of these stories are now featured in a new film that Disney’s Animal Kingdom guests can see when they visit Conservation Station at Rafiki’s Planet Watch.
The film, which is hosted by Disney’s Animal Programs Conservation Director Dr. Anne Savage, has four segments. The segment shown here focuses on conservation projects to protect coral reefs in The Bahamas (in partnership with Disney Cruise Line) and two endangered species: Puerto Rican crested toads and sea turtles.
The next time you visit Rafiki’s Planet Watch, be sure to stop by and view some of the other segments, which feature animals that live on the land and those that make their home in the sea, including gorillas, elephants, manatees, cotton-top tamarins and tigers. Here’s to a new year filled with nature’s magic!
About the size of a squirrel and with a beautiful silky reddish-gold coat, the golden lion tamarin is truly one of nature’s wonders. Guests who visit Disney’s Animal Kingdom can see this tiny endangered monkey at Rafiki’s Planet Watch. I was fortunate enough this summer to see these animals in the only place in the world where they are found in the wild: the forests of Brazil.
Golden lion tamarins are quite a story. With the population hovering at only a few thousand, zoos around the world banded together to reintroduce golden lion tamarins born in their facilities to the wild. It was a success! These animals joined wild golden lion tamarins to form breeding groups that have brought this species back from the brink of extinction. Now, the country of Brazil even pictures a golden lion tamarin on the currency—that’s progress!
Today’s conservation efforts focus on working with people to protect Brazil’s tropical forests to make sure the tamarins continue to have a home. The DWCF has helped support long-term conservation efforts to protect these forests and to develop public education programs that reach millions of people in rural communities and in the largest cities of Brazil.
And, as you’ll see in this new video, the DWCF, along with Disney’s Friends for Change, has helped The Golden Lion Tamarin Association engage the next generation of conservationists — Brazil’s young people — to protect the tamarin.
This is truly a program that we can all be so very proud of, as people in Brazil have rallied to protect this amazing animal for the future.
Did you know?
Golden lion tamarins measure only about a foot from the top of their heads to the base of their tails and weigh little more than a pound.
These small monkeys live high atop the canopy of the rainforest, where they can leap from branch to branch with amazing agility as they forage for food.
They live in family groups of 2 to 8 individuals, and all individuals in the group assist in the rearing of the newborn tamarins.
Check out these other posts from the Wildlife Wednesdays series:
Guests who come to Disney’s Animal Kingdom just love seeing our gorillas when they visit Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. Gorillas are amazing animals, and we are so proud to have them in our care. We’re also very proud to be saving gorillas in the wild.
The Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund (DWCF) has given more than $2 million to support conservation projects that protect primates. And the DWCF and Disney’s Animals Programs teamed up with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International and several Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited facilities (the Dallas, Denver and Houston zoos) to build and operate GRACE (Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center) in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa.
Disney Parks Blog has been following the story of GRACE since the beginning. Of course, our wish, and the wish of the local Congolese people who work at GRACE, is that there would be no baby gorillas orphaned through poaching in need of human care. Until then, we are fortunate to have GRACE, a facility where orphaned gorillas can be rehabilitated for eventual reintroduction to the wild. GRACE currently is home to 12 orphaned gorillas, with 3 more arriving soon.
We hope you enjoy our new video about GRACE.
Want even more inspiration? Click here to see a second video featuring the gorillas at GRACE.
The Disney Parks Blog has been following our progress as a new animal habitat was added to the end of the Kilimanjaro Safaris as a home for a herd of plains zebras. I am pleased to share a photo from the zebras’ first day out (yesterday, October 23) taken by Disney photographer Gene Duncan.
Guests are having lots of fun snapping their own photos of the zebras, which in the wild live in eastern and southern Africa. And our animal care team is continuing to keep a close eye on the various members of the herd as they acclimate to their new habitat. The team reports that they are doing great.
Think bats are scary? The scariest thing about bats is not having them around. Do you like bananas, cashews, cotton t-shirts, pickles or peaches? If so, you can thank a bat. From pest control to pollination, bats worldwide are important to people and nature.
Guests visiting Disney’s Animal Kingdom can get to know bats better during a celebration on Halloween (what better day to celebrate bats?) devoted exclusively to this special-not-spooky species.
At Conservation Station, guests can discover what bats like to eat and where they live. By participating in a variety of games and activities, they can learn cool bat facts and what all of us can do to be sure that bats “hang around.” Guests also can meet our bat keepers and find out how we care for the bats (Malayan Flying Foxes and Rodrigues fruit bats) that make their home on the Maharajah Jungle Trek at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Did you know?
Contrary to popular misconceptions, bats are not blind and do not become entangled in human hair.
As the only mammal capable of true flight, the more than 1,200 species of bats range in size from the world’s smallest mammal, the tiny bumblebee bat that weighs less than a penny, to giant flying foxes with six-foot wingspans.
Many bat species consume vast quantities of insects, including the most damaging agricultural pests. For example, a single little brown bat can eat more than 1,000 mosquito-sized insects in just one hour.
Loss of bats increases demand for chemical pesticides. As insect-eating machines, bats save farmers billions of dollars annually.
From deserts to rainforests, nectar-feeding bats are critical pollinators for a wide variety of plants of great economic and ecological value.
Thanks for visiting the Disney Parks Blog. We welcome your comments. Please understand that this is a moderated blog. Blog comments will be reviewed prior to posting. As a result, there will be a delay in the posting of comments. Not all comments will be posted. Comments may also be removed after they are posted.
