Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Off you go in an open safari vehicle through a simulated African savanna, looking for
hippos, zebras, giraffes, lions, and rhinos. Many readers have asked us whether fewer
animals are visible from Kilimanjaro Safaris around lunchtime than at park opening,
out of concern that the animals might be less active in the midday heat. To help an-
swer that question, we sent a team of researchers to ride continuously during 1 week
in the summer and had them count the number of animals visible at different times of
day. We subdivided our counting into large animals (elephants, hippos, and lions, for
example), small (deer and other ungulates), and birds. Our results indicate that you'll
probably see the same number of animals regardless of when you visit. This finding is
almost certainly due to Disney's deliberate placement of water, food, and shade near
the safari vehicles.
It was cool to discover new animals, learn about them, and see what they
look like. I didn't know how big a baby giraffe really is!
