Elephants should be free.
In zoos across the US, elephants are being imprisoned and exploited for human gain. Help us expose the reality of elephant captivity in the US zoo system and bring it to an end.
Using the map below and the elephant index on this site, learn about the over 250 elephants who are currently held captive in zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and how they are suffering.
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Washington
- Wisconsin
- Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom
- Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens
- White Oak Conservation
- Zoo Miami
- ZooTampa at Lowry Park
The Busch Gardens Tampa Bay currently holds 3 Asian elephants in captivity. The key issue at this facility includes a lack of space for the elephants confined there.
Featured Elephant: Simba
Simba is a 58-year-old Asian elephant who has been held captive at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay for over half a century. She was taken from the wild in 1972, at around four years old, an age at which an elephant calf would be at her mother’s side, nursing, and learning from an entire multigenerational family herd who she would live with her entire life. She has spent 54 years confined to a barren, unnatural enclosure for human entertainment. Simba and the other elephants she is confined with suffer from lack sufficient space and from being unable to engage in their natural behaviors.
Take Action Today
Free to Be Elephants is dedicated to raising awareness of the realities of elephant captivity, but our work doesn’t end there. Elephants are depending on us to correct the grave injustice of their imprisonment. Please take action today to help us secure freedom for elephants in the US.
