Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park just turned 10-years-old!  

The Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund (DWCF) was established on Earth Day, April 22, 1995.  Since then, the DWCF has annually awarded money to conservation projects around the world to assist in preserving the diversity and splendor of the environment. From sea turtles to elephants, chimps to king vultures, DWCF funds have helped improve their chances at survival.

That commitment to conservation and education has continued and received additional importance with the opening of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park on Earth Day 1998.  In the 10 years since the Park opened, Disney’s Animal Kingdom and DWCF have worked hand in hand to make an even more powerful coalition for wildlife. Park guests can also help make a difference by continuing to make financial donations to the ongoing efforts of DWCF.  Animal Kingdom cost nearly $800 million to build and the park covers 500 acres – that’s 5 times larger than the nearby Magic Kingdom.  The park’s massive and iconic “Tree of Life” is covered with carved images of 325 animals and has more than 100,000 leaves.

Although Animal Kingdom is much more than a zoo…the park is an accredited zoo, featuring 1,500 animals representing more than 300 species.  That includes 35 species currently listed as threatened or endangered.

Stumble it!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 at 10:01 am and is filed under Orlando, Walt Disney World Resort. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.