title: Understanding Django initial_data fixture
body: <h2>Question</h2>
  <ul>
  <li>Why does Django automatically load the <code>initial_data.json</code> fixture when it's located inside the project directory but not located in one of the three specified locations that Django searches for fixtures?</li>
  </ul>
  <h2>Configuration Information</h2>
  <ol>
  <li>I have not set the <code>FIXTURE_DIRS</code> setting in settings.py</li>
  <li>Django 1.2.1</li>
  </ol>
  <h2>Django's Documentation Regarding Fixture Locations</h2>
  <p>The <a href="http://docs.djangoproject.com/en/dev/ref/django-admin/#what-s-a-fixture" rel="nofollow noreferrer">What's a &quot;Fixture&quot;</a> section of Django's <a href="http://docs.djangoproject.com/en/dev/ref/django-admin/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">django-admin.py and manage.py</a> documentation states:</p>
  <blockquote>
  <p>Django will search in three locations for fixtures:</p>
  <ol>
  <li>In the fixtures directory of every installed application</li>
  <li>In any directory named in the FIXTURE_DIRS setting</li>
  <li>In the literal path named by the fixture</li>
  </ol>
  <p>Django will load any and all fixtures it finds in these locations that match the provided fixture names.</p>
  </blockquote>