This is the Outdoor Oklahoma Journal, where we're all about helping you pursue and engage in Oklahoma's vibrant outdoor lifestyle. Follow us for great hunting and fishing stories, wildlife features, insider information about unique opportunities, and tangible details on how to go out and be a hunter, angler, and conservationist. The outdoors are always open, so don't miss out!
Welcome Bats to Your Property
With the "free pest control" bats offer in mind, many landowners install bat boxes to welcome bats to their properties.
Tackling Oklahoma's Freezing Temperatures
Explanations of wildlife surviving winter's freezing temperatures often feature birds flying south and bears retreating to their hibernation den. But how do our amphibians and reptiles survive?
The Endangered Species Act: Protecting Species from Extinction
We share the mechanics of the Endangered Species Act, including how the law protects species, how species become listed, and how the Wildlife Department works to conserve species.
Century-old McCurtain Wilderness Area Benefits Wildlife Community
Oklahoma's first management area, the McCurtain County Wilderness Area is the largest remaining patch of mature shortleaf pine-hardwood forest and serves as important wildlife habitat.
State's Oldest Wildlife Area Holds Some of the Rarest Birds
We followed biologists during the McCurtain County Wilderness Area's centennial year as they tracked endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers and worked to restore the forested habitat on which the birds rely.
Hal and Fern Cooper WMA: Where the Buffalo Once Roamed
A cryptic phone call to an Oklahoma Archaeological Survey researcher was the beginning of an incredible archaeological discovery at Hal and Fern Cooper WMA.
Surveyors Savor Sweet Success in Study of Scarce Salamanders
Less than an inch of rain fell on October 9, but it was enough to prompt 196 salamanders to emerge from their underground homes and embark on their annual journey.
Behind the Photographer's Lens: Shorebirds
Migrating shorebirds gave Jeremiah Zurenda an opportunity to combine his love for the outdoors and his passion for photography.
Ozark Plateau Refuge Studies Shed Light on Status of Bats
Biologists survey Oklahoma bats and monitor the Refuge's population for the effects of a relatively new bat disease known as white-nose syndrome.
Woodpeckers of the Wilderness Area: Spring Cavity Checks
Each spring, biologists monitor nest cavities of endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers at the McCurtain County Wilderness Area.