World Oceans Day at the Virginia Zoo

Join us for an extra special Zoo Tales Day on Friday, June 8 at 11 a.m. in the Zoo's Eco Garden. We're reading Dr. Seuss' "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" and "Yertle the Turtle," celebrating diversity in nature -- especially in our oceans -- and learning how local conservation efforts can impact the ocean.

It's a day to celebrate wild things and the places where they live with fun, stories and crafts.

Activities will include story time at 11 a.m. an assortment of crafts and giveaways courtesy of The Ocean Project and the Seuss Foundation. This special Zoo Tales event will also feature a chance to meet a live animal. The event activities are included with general admission.

Diversity of life is so important:

• Each of us relies on a healthy ocean with a rich diversity of life to provide most of the oxygen we breathe, much of the food we eat, as well as medicines and other essentials that we need to survive
• The ocean provides for millions of jobs and endless opportunities for inspiration and recreation such as diving, snorkeling, fishing, and boating. How much would you enjoy the ocean without its great diversity of life?
• The greater the diversity of life in the ocean the better job the ocean will do in helping maintain the planet’s normal climate conditions and in adjusting to a changing climate

The world's oceans are important:

• Generate most of the oxygen we breathe
• Help feed us        
• Regulate our climate
• Clean the water we drink
• Offer us a pharmacopoeia of potential medicines
• Provide limitless inspiration!

How celebrating World Oceans Day can help:

• A worldwide celebration of our shared ocean can help make people more aware of our connections and the importance of the ocean in our daily lives.
• This celebration provides inspirational ways for people to promote their positive impact on the ocean, for example, by reducing CO2 emissions.

For more information about Virginia Zoo activities, call (757) 441-2374. For more information about World Oceans Day, visit www.WorldOceansDay.org.