Have a question about native wildlife? Visit FAQ.

Join the Tulsa Zoo’s Plastic Pledge
The Tulsa Zoo is pledging to reduce our one-time use plastic. This means the zoo is moving away from plastic that is used once then thrown away. Why? Plastic waste causes big problems for wildlife: some animals mistake plastic for food, while others become entangled in the trash. Plastic cannot biodegrade, so every piece of plastic ever made is still in existence today. So, tilt your cup to wildlife! Or purchase re-usable bags, straws and lids. Learn more here.

Seafood Watch Conservation Outreach and Restaurant Partner
At the Tulsa Zoo, our California sea lions serve as our ambassadors for ocean conservation. Choices we all make everyday can have a great impact on the conditions threatening sea lions and other marine life. The Tulsa Zoo is a Conservation Outreach and Restaurant Partner of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program. This program supports healthy, abundant oceans by promoting sustainable seafood. We may be landlocked in Oklahoma, but our actions still have a big impact on the world’s oceans.

Learn more about how the seafood choices you make impact current conditions threatening sea lions and other marine life at Seafood Watch.

Get the Seafood Watch mobile app through Apple App Store or Google Play.

Sustainable Palm Oil
The biggest threat to wild Asian elephants, tigers and primates is deforestation in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Nigeria and Colombia. The main crop planted after the forest is cleared is palm oil. Palm oil is used in many everyday foods and products, like cookies, crackers, toothpaste and lotion. Palm oil is a crop that is really important to the economy and people in Indonesia and Malaysia, and can be produced in a responsible way without cutting down the rainforest. This practice produces sustainable palm oil. The easiest thing you can do to help these wild animals is to support companies who are making the commitment to use sustainable palm oil.

Download and explore these tools created to guide you through the process of purchasing sustainable products:
iPhone App
Android App

Visit Sustainable Palm Oil Platform to find out more about the palm oil crisis.

The Monarch Initiative of Tulsa

The Tulsa Zoo is part of The Monarch Initiative of Tulsa, which is focused on monarch butterfly conservation within Tulsa and the state of Oklahoma. This group is made up of representatives from the Tulsa Garden Center, The Nature Conservancy – Oklahoma Chapter, Oxley Nature Center, Tulsa Botanic Garden, Riverfield Country Day School,  and the Tulsa Zoo. The Monarch Initiative works to develop a consistent message that directs and mentors people within our community to create and plant monarch habitats, which are known as waystations.

Visit Monarch Initiative of Tulsa site.

Monarch Butterfly  Conservation

Monarch butterflies need our help. Milkweed, their only food source, is experiencing a rapid decline, which could cause them to go extinct. You can help monarch butterflies by planting milkweed in your own backyard. By  doing this, you are creating a Monarch Waystation, which provides monarch butterflies with a specific habitat to assist and maintain their migration periods.

Check out the  Pollinator Guide,  Native Plant ID Guide  and  Milkweed Guide  from our friends at the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture. Click here to learn more about this important organization, and to find  additional literature about sustainable agriculture.  

Learn where you can purchase milkweed below

Tulsa Metro nurseries and plant festivals are excellent sources for milkweed plants and nectar plants. Both are must haves for Monarchs. The butterflies lay eggs ONLY on milkweed plants, and they need fuel, which comes from the blooms of dozens of Oklahoma native and non-native plants.

Here are some places which usually have a variety of plants that will draw Monarchs to your garden.