The Surprising Reason You Never See These Pests at Disney

In the 1960s, Walt Disney got the green light on the “Florida Project,” taking 27,000 acres of swampland and transforming it into a magical oasis.

Since it officially opened its doors to Guests in 1971, the Walt Disney World Resort has been swarmed by die-hard Disney Guests. Setting the standard for pristine Parks and high-caliber customer care, Disney has built a reputation on its undeniable magic. It’s rare to see the typical theme Park faux pas like restrooms in disarray or overflowing garbage cans.

With Disney’s strenuous efforts to keep the Parks in mint condition, a Guest took to Reddit yesterday to point out its ability to drive away the peskiest crowd to enter the turnstiles. In a popular post by u/majkeli, a question was raised about Disney’s ability to keep the most bothersome bugs away from Guests:

We’re on our way home today and just realized we haven’t seen a single mosquito or fly the whole time. This is Florida and we should be getting attacked. How the heck do they do that? This is at the resorts too where there aren’t a thousand people to thin out what should be a mosquito attack hoard.

[deleted by user]
by inWaltDisneyWorld

Over 100 Disney fans rushed to the comments to cosign the original post, with u/Utter_cockwomble citing the Houdini behind Disney’s pest control:

IPM- integrated pest management. Disney is really good at it.

Contrary to popular belief, Disney’s magic doesn’t safeguard Guests from mosquito pricks. There’s a rich history behind the absence of skeeters, dating back to Disney’s roots.

A Well-Oiled Machine

Disney’s masterful mosquito ban dates back to a man whose name you’ve probably seen on the ferry from the Ticket and Transportation Center to the Magic Kingdom. According to Christopher Lucas, author of Top Disney: 100 Top Ten Lists of the Best of Disney, MIT graduate and engineering maven Major General William “Joe” Potter served as governor of the Panama Canal Zone, where his mission was to eliminate mosquitoes carrying malaria and the West Nile virus.

Potter met Walt Disney at the 1964 World’s Fair, where Potter chatted about his mosquito-killing credentials. Walt hired him “on the spot,” and his instrumental work preventing mosquito infestations at Walt Disney World earned him a permanent spot on the ferry displaying “General Joe Potter.”

In Lucas’s book, he points out three critical Potter-inspired structural features in Walt Disney World that aren’t designed to kill mosquitoes but keep them out of the Parks completely.

1. Water

Especially in swampy land, mosquitoes are attracted to standing water, and Lucas points out in his book that Disney constantly keeps water flowing with its fountain structures.

2. Architecture

Similarly, Disney adopted Potter’s method of designing buildings that allow water to flow directly off of them. Without water collecting on rooftops, the mosquitoes aren’t tempted to linger.

3. Plants

We’re living with the land at Disney, remember? And the plants are intentionally chosen to drive away mosquitoes. None of them collect water, eliminating puddles where mosquitoes gather.

To put the cherry on top of a well-oiled mosquito prevention machine, Disney uses a spray to ward off the pests. Of course, Walt would never allow insecticide chemicals in his Parks, so this is a liquid garlic spray proven to drive away pesky mosquitoes. Thanks to Integrated Pest Management and the legacy of General “Joe” Potter, who passed away in 1988, Disney World Parks have become experts in controlling its most unruly crowd.