Why Are There No Mosquitoes at Disney World?

Disney World is billed as the “Happiest Place” in the world. And it does have at least one magical attribute. There are no mosquitos at the park. But in the middle of all the magic, how does the "Happiest Place on Earth" manage to stave off bothersome bloodsuckers in a place where marshes rule supreme and buzzing insects are a daily annoyance? 

Disney World is located in the swamplands of Florida. The region is teeming with mosquitoes. So, how was this feat accomplished? 

Walt Disney opened his first Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It was a huge success right from the start. Soon, Disney was looking to expand. His planners scouted the East Coast for a perfect location. Florida was chosen for its year- round sunny weather. The plot for the new park was huge. The Disney company bought up 25,000 full acres of land. Every square inch of that land was planned. Even the trash cans were placed in strategic spots. But there was an unforeseen problem. Disney never planned on using all 25,000 acres. He wanted to keep half of it untouched . The natural scenery would attenuate the amusement park. But this meant the rides were surrounded by swamps. 

And the swamps were breeding grounds for mosquitoes. This would obviously scare away visitors. So, Disney had to solve the problem. The man who helped him was Major General William “Joe Potter''. Potter had worked at the Panama Canal Zone. He had become an expert in mosquito control. The engineer was hired by Disney. From the start, he signled out standing water as a problem. Potter's methods were not focused on killing the mosquitos. He wanted to prevent them from laying eggs. So he drained the swamps by building ditches. But not all wetlands could be drained. Mosquitoes lay their eggs in still water. So Potter made sure the remaining water was constantly flowing. Most Disney world visitors don't even notice it. But every single water source at the park is flowing. All the buildings are built so that the water flows right off of them. They are curved, so that there's no standing water. Even the plants were selected on purpose. None of them create pooling water. None of them are planted near water sources. There are no water lilies at the park. And every manmade river has a specific fish species. All of them eat mosquito larvae. Finally, the grounds are sprayed with garlic spray. It's so faint the visitors don't notice it.  But it's completely natural and keeps any stray bugs away. The Mosquito Surveillance Program still runs today. There are carbon dioxide traps everywhere. Trapped insects are analyzed by scientists. This helps them to be alert to any new populations. All of this works to make Disney World mosquito- free.