Poll What was your alligator awareness?

[perkinsrose]

poll: What WAS your alligator awareness?
(prior to all the media attention and tragedy of recent weeks)

 

[Josh Hendy]

I looked for them ... but mostly in the backstage areas such as the canals behind MK which you see from the train. I probably would not have been alert on a beach at Grand Floridian ... although if it was unlit and not full of people I would have been watching for snakes.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

Like Josh, we look for them.

And like him, I probably wouldn't have been on alert for them at the GF. But I would have never been that water, either. To me it is nasty, swamp water. I wouldn't get even close to it. Especially at night.

 

[Donald Duck888]

I am definitely from a non alligator area (NH) but I did always keep at least kind of an eye out for them.

 

[Mac30188]

Polling a Disney discussion board after an alligator attack will have skewed results. Certainly people who didn't think about them before are aware now. Many of those people will say they were aware/thinking about them before the attack, but it is almost impossible to confirm the validity of the mindset pre-attack. In addition, since it is on a Disney discussion board, the assumption is you are polling a group significantly more educated in Disney World than the average guess. In short, I would assume the general awareness is at least 10 points worse than the poll results and the probably is vastly underestimating the difference.

 

[perkinsrose]

Yes. Of course this is a very small sect of the public with a skewed perspective influenced by emotions, experience, etc. Just interested in seeing the succinct percentages. I know I can say how I felt/was aware or unaware and quite sure that some people change their view in hindsight but interested anyway how that will be shown in responses. This is by no means a scientific study.

 

[SeeDisney]

I definitely positively knew alligators existed in Florida, IMO in today's day of social media, youtube with the alligators being filmed randomly in people's houses, inground pools and golf courses, I think most people in the country would know nowadays that alligators are in Florida.....but...actually, myself I would have not known that they are living in the lagoon by Magic Kingdom. I guess I live in the happiest place in the world bubble.

 

[ZellyB]

Not from an alligator area, but knew of the possibility and looked for them. We saw one in the pond area near Shades of Green on a previous trip.

 

[Mac30188]

Yes. Of course this is a very small sect of the public with a skewed perspective influenced by emotions, experience, etc. Just interested in seeing the succinct percentages. I know I can say how I felt/was aware or unaware and quite sure that some people change their view in hindsight but interested anyway how that will be shown in responses. This is by no means a scientific study.

In that same thought line, the question that gives me nightmares is, "Would you have let your daughter splash in the water at the shoreline or bend over to get water for a sand castle?" My gut reaction is, no, I would have read the sign, interpreted the alligator threat, and not allowed it. In the back of my mind, I wonder how much of that is hindsight speak. I feel very confident in I would not have let her swim in the lake. I just don't know about the other parts (sandcastle water especially). I probably will never know if I would or would not have let her do the same thing. Would it depend on using all my senses at the time to evaluate the threat level? Maybe. Is this just my mind playing tricks on me due to the fear of such a horrific event happening to my own daughter? Maybe.

 

[wilkeliza]

To be honest, I am from an "alligator area" and knew the risk but never thought of it. In south Texas gators are there but you almost never hear of attacks. I have even seen little ones on property and knew the bigger ones where there tol. I just was naive and thought a gator attack wouldn't happen like this.

 

[PlanningForTheFamily]

I am not from an "alligator area" and it honestly never occurred to me that there would be alligators in the resort areas. If I were camping, I would have researched wildlife safety but staying in a resort I would have (apparently incorrectly) believed that the resort would ensure deadly wildlife were not close to where family activities are held.

Edited to add: Also, my trip in January will be the first time I've been to Disney in 15 years so I haven't had the experience of seeing people feed Alligators from the Polynesian or learning about Disney wildlife through experience.

 

[pd1138]

I knew it was a possibility in Florida. But, I have to admit we've stayed at the yacht and beach club four times and are planning our fifth stay this August and I've stayed away and had my kids stay away from the water more because of the thought of brain eating amoeba. I was really off with the wrong fear here.

 

[AJA]

I am not from an alligator area but I did know to watch for them, probably because I am from an area that has the same venomous snakes as Florida, especially "cotton mouth" water snakes that can be aggressive. My best friends daughter was bitten by one years ago ( here at home not at Disney) and I have been hyper vigilant ever since.

Maybe if I didn't have a snake phobia I would not have been as informed since alligators aren't something on my radar here at home?

 

[lady_hlh]

I used to live in Miami for 4 years so I was aware of all the alligators in Florida. My hubby also saw them swimming in the lake at CSR so I knew they were at WDW, we never let our daughter wade around in any of the WDW lakes.

 

[Tiggerette]

I am from an “alligator area” & I knew of the possibility of alligators but did not think [there would be alligators in well-populated and noisy areas such as resorts and parks].

 

[chanliteheart]

Yeah, Northeast city kid here: I knew alligators were part of the wildlife in FL but I incorrectly assumed WDW was performing enough population control so that guests weren't in harm's way. Now, seeing/hearing that much of WDW's land is laced with interconnected waterways ... yikes. There's no way they could keep up with population control, especially right after breeding season. It's an eye opener, for sure.
Sadly, THEY knew all that but didn't think proper warning signs were in order. On second thought, that makes me really angry.

 

[BrianL]

I look for them, but not because I worry about them but because I think they are cool to see.

 

[mshanson3121]

Not from an alligator area, knew they were in Florida, certainly did not expect that they would be on Disney property.


In a way, this is a pointless poll. You're polling a bunch of Disney fanatics who have well above average knowledge of Disney. Now, it'll still give some insight, sure. But it sure isn't going to be a good representation of the majority of guests who visit Disney.

 

[jandlinz]

I agree that the poll may be skewed. I know about the alligators on Disney property because of these boards. I most certainly did not think alligators were at resorts before joining the DIS, but knew alligators were in Florida. My mom has been to Disney 38 times and had no clue alligators were on property. She just stayed at the Poly in February and thought the no swimming signs were due to the amoeba bacteria.

 

[merrick]

i am a relatively new poster here... didn't even know of this board when i went on our first and only disney holiday. i am *not* from alligator territory and realized abstractly there were gators in florida; there is lots of water connected so it makes sense they "get around".

i have seen videos of them but wasn't aware any have been found on disney property. from what i have seen, i would have been aware at a golf course but not really an amusement park/resort area. i assumed there was control in place, to manage them when they got too big to be around humans safely.

i admit i didn't think about it at all when i was there.... i didn't see any signs, no warnings... everyone told us not to drink the water when i got off the plane in the dominican, on the bus to the resort, at the resort when we arrived. there were signs in the public bathrooms and in our bathroom in our rooms. so we didn't drink the water.

i didn't go in or let my kids in the lake at the CR but that is because i am a rules person and when it says no swimming, we aren't going in. btw, had never heard of this brain eating amoeba either... til all this has come up.