There are two elephants missing from the Kilimanjaro Safari. The first most people have heard about. Before the park opened to previews, the original Safari ended with the Big Red being killed and your tour vehicle driving the poachers away from her dead carcass. This effect was removed before opening because executives felt (and rightly so) that this was a little too intense for an environmental message (as it is covered in the queue video). Still, in the early days of the safari, Big Red was "killed." The soundtrack was eventually changed to let guests know that Big Red was going to be OK.
The other missing elephant is more interesting. The original lion area was to have the carcass of an elephant as the animal's feeding area. This idea was dropped when the vets let the imagineers know just how often a guest might actually get a chance to see one of the carnivores eating from the side of their downed elephant: next to none.
A few more lion tidbits: apparently the vets freeze feeder rabbits into blocks of ice to help keep the lions on show and out of the shade during the summer. It keeps them cool, keeps them interested and it keeps them on pride rock. And I've heard there are air conditioners hidden in the rocks, but I don't know that for certain.
The other missing elephant is more interesting. The original lion area was to have the carcass of an elephant as the animal's feeding area. This idea was dropped when the vets let the imagineers know just how often a guest might actually get a chance to see one of the carnivores eating from the side of their downed elephant: next to none.
A few more lion tidbits: apparently the vets freeze feeder rabbits into blocks of ice to help keep the lions on show and out of the shade during the summer. It keeps them cool, keeps them interested and it keeps them on pride rock. And I've heard there are air conditioners hidden in the rocks, but I don't know that for certain.