Escaped Otter is Home Safe but US Zoo Says her Pal is Still on the Loose

  The two North American river otters escaped two weeks ago from the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Reuters
The two North American river otters escaped two weeks ago from the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Reuters
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Escaped Otter is Home Safe but US Zoo Says her Pal is Still on the Loose

  The two North American river otters escaped two weeks ago from the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Reuters
The two North American river otters escaped two weeks ago from the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Reuters

Ophelia the escaped zoo otter is back home but Louie remains elusive — perhaps in search of a mate.
The two North American river otters escaped two weeks ago from the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Ophelia was captured Friday night, the zoo said in a Facebook post.
Her return was kept under wraps until Tuesday while she was held for observation. A veterinarian’s examination Monday cleared her for return to her enclosure, The Associated Press reported.
However, she “may not always be visible to guests,” the zoo said. “Ophelia has always been a bit shy and enjoys tucking into things to take naps throughout the day.”
The mammals escaped through a hole in a fence during a snowstorm.
Louie remains on the lam. “This is otter breeding season and we expect that, as a male otter, Louie is likely ranging a bit further from home than Ophelia did.”
It's unlikely Louie is too far away, the zoo said. Otters are territorial creatures.
He's undoubtedly safe — otters are native to the area — and poses no harm to humans.
The zoo has had help from a tracker, motion-activated cameras and reports from residents who see the critters, particularly those who are able to take photos or video of the animal.



These Canadian Rocks May Be the Oldest on Earth

A close-up view of metagabbroic rocks from the Nuvvuagittuq greenstone belt in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada, that are 4.16 billion years old is seen in this photograph released on June 26, 2025. (Jonathan O'Neil/Handout via Reuters)
A close-up view of metagabbroic rocks from the Nuvvuagittuq greenstone belt in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada, that are 4.16 billion years old is seen in this photograph released on June 26, 2025. (Jonathan O'Neil/Handout via Reuters)
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These Canadian Rocks May Be the Oldest on Earth

A close-up view of metagabbroic rocks from the Nuvvuagittuq greenstone belt in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada, that are 4.16 billion years old is seen in this photograph released on June 26, 2025. (Jonathan O'Neil/Handout via Reuters)
A close-up view of metagabbroic rocks from the Nuvvuagittuq greenstone belt in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada, that are 4.16 billion years old is seen in this photograph released on June 26, 2025. (Jonathan O'Neil/Handout via Reuters)

Scientists have identified what could be the oldest rocks on Earth from a rock formation in Canada.

The Nuvvuagittuq Greenstone Belt has long been known for its ancient rocks — plains of streaked gray stone on the eastern shore of Hudson Bay in Quebec. But researchers disagree on exactly how old they are.

Work from two decades ago suggested the rocks could be 4.3 billion years old, placing them in the earliest period of Earth's history. But other scientists using a different dating method contested the finding, arguing that long-ago contaminants were skewing the rocks' age and that they were actually slightly younger at 3.8 billion years old.

In the new study, researchers sampled a different section of rock from the belt and estimated its age using the previous two dating techniques — measuring how one radioactive element decays into another over time. The result: The rocks were about 4.16 billion years old.

The different methods "gave exactly the same age,” said study author Jonathan O'Neil with the University of Ottawa.

The new research was published Thursday in the journal Science.

Earth formed about 4.5 billion years ago from a collapsing cloud of dust and gas soon after the solar system existed. Primordial rocks often get melted and recycled by Earth's moving tectonic plates, making them extremely rare on the surface today. Scientists have uncovered 4 billion-year-old rocks from another formation in Canada called the Acasta Gneiss Complex, but the Nuvvuagittuq rocks could be even older.

Studying rocks from Earth's earliest history could give a glimpse into how the planet may have looked — how its roiling magma oceans gave way to tectonic plates — and even how life got started.

“To have a sample of what was going on on Earth way back then is really valuable,” said Mark Reagan with the University of Iowa, who studies volcanic rocks and lava and was not involved with the new study.

The rock formation is on tribal Inukjuak lands and the local Inuit community has temporarily restricted scientists from taking samples from the site due to damage from previous visits.

After some geologists visited the site, large chunks of rock were missing and the community noticed pieces for sale online, said Tommy Palliser, who manages the land with the Pituvik Landholding Corp. The Inuit community wants to work with scientists to set up a provincial park that would protect the land while allowing researchers to study it.

“There's a lot of interest for these rocks, which we understand,” said Palliser, a member of the community. “We just don't want any more damage.”