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If I lived in the Orlando area I would definitely buy a Walt Disney World annual pass. I’d especially consider doing so once I had children, and no, it isn’t so that I could drag a bunch of toddlers around the Magic Kingdom all of the time. Or try to get myself locked in there overnight to live out some childhood fantasies. Well, it wouldn’t be just for that.
It’d be so I could play Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. All right, I kid, though only sort of. No, I’d get a pass, and ones for my as-yet fictional children, for one main reason: The Animal Kingdom.
Some of the greatest memories I have of growing up are of my family’s frequent visits to the Philadelphia Zoo (I even had my third birthday party there). Looking back one of the great things that I know the zoo did was have a lot of educational days and programs for children. Perhaps my still-enduring love of animals was sparked, or at least cultivated, through these experiences.
Now that I spend a lot of time on the official Disney Parks blog I can attest that the Animal Kingdom constantly holds special educational days, usually geared towards children, that are themed around a wide variety of animals. I don’t always post about them because I don’t think many readers are able to attend, but there’s a special event coming up that is of note because of the day on which it falls: Leap Day.
That’s right: while the Magic Kingdom opens its doors for a full 24 hours and no doubt a record flood of guests will pour through the gates, its younger sibling the Animal Kingdom is hosting a special Leap to Help Frogs on Leap Day. The event is focused on teaching children all about the various members of the amphibian family.
Heading over to Rafiki’s Planet Watch, kids can make their own toad habitats that they can use in their backyards. They can also learn to leap like a frog, listen to frog calls, and even get to meet some special amphibians at the Conservation Station Stage.
Speaking of conservation, the Animal Kingdom as always will include a special message in its event teaching children to be good stewards of the environment. On Leap Day guests will learn about the Puerto Rican crested toad (pictured above), a critically endangered animal that’s currently being raised at the Animal Kingdom. Experts will also give guests tips on what they can do to help preserve amphibians, creatures of vital importance to the ecosystem that work as pest-control and whose skin, in some cases, contains microbes that can be used in health research.
Kids will be encouraged to use the toad abodes they built themselves as eco-friendly pest control in their yards. They’ll also be encouraged to learn more about amphibians by taking a trip to a local park with a body of water to hear frog or toad songs, check out books on the animals, and more.
The Animal Kingdom doesn’t have its doors open for 24 hours on Leap Day, making it an ideal spot to head to in the middle of the day when the crowds are really bad. Plus when you’re there, you’ll learn all about animals and conservation – what’s better? Not much for me, at least.
Related Articles:
One More Day at Disneyland Too
Kunekunes Come to the Animal Kingdom
Clean the World the Disney Way
*(This image by USFWS/Southeast is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.)
