Ask A Cast Member (1): Gators In Splash Mountain

As mentioned in a previous post, I'm starting a new series called Ask a Cast Member. So today I'm answering one of my first questions. And this one is a doozy:

Question: Is it true there are alligators in Splash Mountain?

Answer: Yes. Haven't you ever been on Splash Mountain? Look, I'll show you:

I couldn't resist, the setup was too easy.

In all seriousness though, the answer to this "urban legend" appears to be yes. Although I never saw a gator in Splash Mountain myself (I did see one in a water hazard at a Disney golf course though) there are YouTube videos of gators in various water habitats throughout the park, such as this one. Before you get all freaked out though, it appears as though this fairly young alligator was in the swampy water that surrounds the ride, and not the actual ride flume itself. Chances are the waters of Splash Mountain are a tad too chlorinated for a gator to be happy for an extended period of time. Nevertheless, make sure when they tell you to keep your hands and arms inside the log, you pay attention. You never know, after all...

Since a lot of the area around the Disney parks in Florida is undeveloped, there is a sizable wildlife population there (and I'm not talking about the wildlife who live at Animal Kingdom). You're going to encounter lots of birds, lizards, and squirrels. We even had a stray cat wander through backstage every once in a while.

Probably the most "wild" animals that I came in contact with at the park were a male and two female mallard ducks who made their home in the Fantasmic pond. We always wondered where they went during the show (since there's lots of boat, fire, and pyrotechnics going on), but in the few hours before the show actually started they were there pretty regular. About May a group of ducklings even showed up. Although there were originally 3 ducklings, after about two weeks, only one was around regularly paddling away after it's mother.

My fellow cast members named it Leroy. Of course, once Leroy's adult feathers started coming in it was apparent that Leroy was actually a female mallard. Oops!

And this concludes my first Ask a Cast Member feature. If you have your own Disney-related question, submit it using this form.

Have a Disney-related question about the parks, movies, or even about me? Check out the Ask A Cast Member feature and send in your questions!