On my recent trip to Walt Disney World, I made sure to leave a morning to myself to wander around my favorite park. It was an overcast morning which turned out to be a great time to see some animals out and about. It’s been several months since I walked around Animal Kingdom so some of what appears “different” to me may not be so new.
In the Oasis, the Spoonbills were very feisty – several were being extremely protective of the eggs they were nesting. There was a lot of bill snapping going on!
The pastries at Kusafiri were very decorative and tempting!
I don’t recall seeing the Paroon Shark-Catfish before. It was hard to get a good photograph.
As I made my way into the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail, some of the signage appeared to be refreshed!
I love the aviary here and also in the Maharajah Jungle Trek! The Taveta Golden Weavers were busy flitting about. Their opening to their nests are on the bottom, to help ward off intruders. They build a “shelf” inside so they have a place to rest.
There were lots of meerkats out, don’t think I have seen this many in quite some time.
And in the same viewing area, the Gerenuks! Their necks can stretch really far!
Many gorillas were out and about on this morning. I may have seen just about all of them. I actually found myself going back and forth between the two main viewing areas (the first that is enclosed with the floor-ceiling glass and the one over the wobbly bridge).
You can find the baby not too far from the mother.
Realizing I had spent over an hour on the trail, I headed over to Asia.
One of the Siamangs was having a ball swinging back and forth on the high wire.
Anyone up for a trip?
Here is another of the signs that looked refreshed.
The Komodo Dragon was walking around on the rocks – usually I just see the dragon sunning!
Tiger Forest coming up….
The tigers were quite lazy and all but one was sleeping.
The Elds Deer like to hang out in the far left corner of their area. You can find them in the same viewing spot as the Black Buck, Sarus Crane and the Ox.
The Aviary —-
I enjoyed my visit. Be sure to talk and ask questions of the animal keepers that are along the trails. They have lots of information to share. And, in the aviaries, they can usually point out a bird you may have missed.
Thank you Deb for the photos . I love your site and I love Disney. I have not been since Thanksgiving 2006. However I am returning for 6 days in August with my mother and 13 year old daughter, I love AK a lot but to be honest I never just wandered the way you did. I am sure I missed a lot. This time I will leave a lil time for wandering.
Thanks Again,
Akeisha Faulkner
You missed the bats! That is my son Kailen’s favorite part 🙂
Thanks for the photos Deb. I spent hours, yes hours, watching the gorillas in March when we were there (by the way, we all missed seeing you this year). I spoke to the keepers about the little gorilla and they said she is doing remarkably well. There is no precedent for the kind of treatment she is getting so they are blazing the trail. There are even “human” specialists in addition to the Vets working on her treatment. There is even hope she might catch up to normal with continued work. She looked pretty normal to me.
I loved your bird photos. I aspire to taking really good shots like that, but won’t carry a camera the size I need.
Again thanks for making me smile today.
Deb: I carry a small camera most of the time in the parks now. It is a Panasonic ZS6. PS Sorry I missed you this year .
Thank you for the beautiful pictures and captions. As I was reading the captions to the pictures I felt like I was actually inside Animal Kingdom. I always enjoy reading all that you publish on Walt Disney World. Keep up the great work 🙂
Deb, thanks so much for the tour. There is another snowstorm on the way here in Vermont…no it is NOT an April Fools day joke, and I needed a little mental get away!
I love this park and so does my sister-in-law. We enjoy wondering through the treks on a really warm day under the shady trees, listening to the birds. Her favorite place is the naked mole-rat shelter (Rufus’s family) and I love to watch the tigers and the bats. We could spend days just at Animal Kingdom park alone(so those who say it is a 1/2 day park are, well, goofy!). Boy I wish I was there right now instead of getting my snow shovel ready to go…again!
Thanks Deb for sharing your gorgeous pictures. I am totally having AK withdrawal, as it is one of my 4 favorite parks. 🙂
hmm…looks like laundry day for the gorillas. Thanks for the pics, Deb. Always good to see what’s going on!!
Hi Deb,
Thank you for the trip through one of my
favorite places too. I love watching the gorillas. Your photos are great!
Hi Deb!! Great blog! I usually start my day at the office checking what´s new in All Ears. Walking in animal kingdom wasn´t my idea of fun three years ago, when my wife an I were celebrating our honeymoon in Disney world, we walked straight ahead to Expedition Everest and Dinosaur!! But now things have changed, as we have been blessed with a baby boy that’s now 1 year and 8 months old, and I think that walking in the Exploration Trail as you did would be perfect for him, because he loves animals!
And now a question, do you think the WDW would be over crowded if we decide to travel from December 16 till 23?
Thanks in advance and congratulations for your great blog!!
Roberto Paredes G Femat. Mexico
DEB: The closer you get to major holidays the more crowded the park gets. But, if that’s the only time you can go, just know you have to go slow and have reasonable expectations.
Deb – Great pictures. I love spending solo time wandering both the Pangani Trail and Maharajah Jungle Trek. The painted temples on the Maharajah Jungle Trek were new on my March trip since the last time I was there in 2009.
Becky
Thanks for the photos! I love AK too. I recently read that the baby gorilla is developmentally delayed. Do you know anything about that? I love the photo of the active komodo dragon, and food porn/pictures are always welcome.
DEB: I heard the same thing you did about the baby gorilla. I don’t know anything else.