6 Absolutely Genius Reasons Why There Are No Mosquitoes at Disney World
By: Neal Tucker (D Is For Disney)
Disney World lives in the Sunshine State of Florida, which has its fair share of swampland and humidity. So, here’s a fun question that a lot of people have asked, “Why are there no mosquitoes at Disney World?“
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Here are 6 absolutely genius reasons for why there are no mosquitos at Walt Disney World…
At first, you might be too busy tinkering with the My Disney Experience app or too engrossed in the magical scenery of the Magic Kingdom, that you don’t notice the absence of mosquitoes and other bugs.
Then, after a while, you may realize that you haven’t been shooing away those awful insects ever since you entered the park.
So, how come there are virtually no mosquitoes in the Happiest and Most Magical Place on earth?
Is the Disney magic behind it all? Let’s unfold the 6 reasons together.
1. No Mosquitoes at Disney World: Thanks to Joe Potter’s Ditches
Joe Potter [Source: D23]In the 1960s, Walt Disney hired Major General William “Joe” Potter, an MIT graduate, engineering expert, and the previous governor of the Panama Canal Zone.
In that place damaged by malaria-carrying mosquitoes, Potter was able to develop an extensive knowledge of pest control.
So, when Walt and Joe had a conversation at the 1964 World’s Fair, the latter shared his background in mosquito control.
Walt hired him right away and placed him in charge of keeping mosquitoes out of the theme park that Walt was planning on establishing.
Of course, that theme park is Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida .
So, what did Potter do?
Mr. Potter knew from the get-go that the theme park shouldn’t have stagnant water, where the insects lay their eggs.
So, he supervised the construction of drainage ditches, which would discard excess water before it even had a chance to pool.
So, if you think you’ve seen water staying still in the park, your eyes might have actually deceived you!
After all, even the seemingly stagnant water in the park is always moving.
“The guests usually don’t notice it…but the water is constantly flowing… Whenever you walk by a body of water, there’s usually a fountain in the middle of it, or they’re doing something to keep it flowing.” Christopher Lucas of Top Disney Blog
2. Brilliant Architecture at Disney World
Buildings at Disney World [Source: Mickey Blog]Even the buildings around the park have their roofs designed specially to allow rainwater to run off entirely, never leaving a pool of water.
In other words, there are no mosquitoes at Disney World because the buildings are curved, sloped, arched, or angled just perfectly so.
“The architecture is really appealing to the eye, but it also serves a purpose: It makes it less conducive to mosquitoes.” Christopher Lucas of Top Disney Blog
3. Careful Selection of Plants
Panchito Pistoles, Donald Duck and Jose Carioca at Epcot theme park [Source: Orange County Register]What’s more, Disney World makes sure they don’t have plants that would permit water to puddle in them.
That’s why there are no water lilies in bodies of water.
Instead, those places are filled with fishes that eat mosquito larvae such as minnows, koi, goldfish.
There’s even one fish that swims around Disney World literally called a “mosquitofish”, because they eat the larvae of mosquitos!
According to Wikipedia:
The common name, mosquitofish, is derived from their use for biological control of mosquitoes, which itself was based on early observations that, in certain circumstances, they can reduce mosquito abundances. Wikipedia
Is that genius or what?!
Koi Pond at Epcot’s Japan Pavilion [Source:4. Yes to Sprays, No to Insects!
The type of spray here isn’t the kind you may be thinking of…
From the very beginning, Walt Disney made it crystal clear that no chemicals should be used in his park.
He didn’t want the environment ruined, so to use pesticides was a big no-no.
As an alternative, Disney World uses liquid garlic.
Since mosquitoes detest the smell of garlic, Disney World sprays an extract around the park.
They spray a sufficient amount – small enough for humans not to notice, but enough to be effective for the insects to be susceptible to it.
In addition, Walt Disney World Resort also gives complimentary insect repellents for guests. Sort of like a cherry on top of the cake. You almost certainly won’t need it, but it’s nice to have anyway.
Walt Disney World Resort Mosquito Prevention Signage [Source: Inside the Magic]5. Mosquitoes at Disney World Get Frozen
To keep insects at bay, the park also maintains mosquito traps that use carbon dioxide to attract mosquitoes, and then promptly trap them.
The trapped mosquitoes are then frozen and analyzed so that their species and concentration can be revealed.
This kind of information allows Disney World Cast Members to figure out how to deal with them appropriately.
6. Sentinel Chickens at Disney World
Leghorn Laying Chickens Used to Detect Mosquito-borne Diseases [Source: Orange County Register]Yes, you read that correctly…
Sentinel chickens are apparently living in coops all over the park!
Park employees monitor the chickens’ blood regularly , to find out where they should spray more.
Why chickens? Because they can serve as carriers of the viruses that mosquitoes carry, but they seldom get sick because of the insects.
For more details, watch this video.
Why There Are No Mosquitoes at Disney World Wrap Up
Putting it briefly, the Walt Disney magic behind this wonder comes from these 6 genius reasons:
- Joe Potter’s Ditches
- Architecture
- Landscaping
- Mosquito Traps
- Sprays
- Sentinel Chickens!
Because of these incredibly genius methods that the park uses on a daily basis, the mosquitoes are minimized.
To the point that you probably won’t notice a single one the whole time you’re there!
And for that, we have Walt Disney, Joe Potter, and all the Imagineers and Cast Members to thank.
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Those are some really inventive things that they do at Disney. I especially like the sentinel chickens.
I quit going to Disney decades ago once my kids were grown. If I had to listen to ''It's a Small World'' one more time they would have had to commit me.
LOL. The street watering trucks here play out loud at Christmas time "Jingle Bells" but the rest of the year it's "Small World" so I can't get away from it.
I never knew this. I have a ton of mosquitos and I am always looking for ways to mitigate the issue. We do have a stream, but maybe I can get some fish that won't but the other fish, and that would help greatly.
I believe that you have enough property, use the old Indian trick of dealing with mosquitoes plant sweet grass. That will surely help.
Here are some other plants to help keep the skeeters at bay.
I visited Walt Disney World in 1973 when I graduated from Navy Boot Camp and there were plenty of mosquitoes then, but then again the park was still under construction and most of the measures mentioned above were not even in place yet. One also has to consider that much of Orlando was a swamp and that had to drained for the construction of the Naval Training Center Orlando and Walt Disney World.
Do they harvest eggs from the sentinel chickens?
Probably use them in the park restaurants...
Disney was very smart and creative in many ways
When we moved to Chongqing a few years ago I noticed that there were no screens on the windows of the apartments even though the city is in a semi-tropical zone - palm trees, orange groves, etc. However we did not have a problem with mosquitoes and the reason why is that mounted on damn near every lamppost in the area are these...