ODDLY ENOUGH

ODDLY ENOUGH

2 large rodents escape from Toronto zoo, remain at large

TORONTO

The hunt continues for two large rodents that escaped from a Toronto zoo.

Megan Price, a spokeswoman with the city’s Parks, Forestry and Recreation division that runs High Park Zoo, says the search for two missing capybaras, which resemble tailless beavers with short legs, is focused on the area’s creeks.

The animals, native to South Africa, are the world’s largest rodents. They weigh about 30 pounds each and could grow to 100 pounds.

The pair has been on the lam since May 24 when they took off while they were being introduced to their enclosure as part of a zoo exchange.

The semi-aquatic rodents can be difficult to find because they can remain still and submerged under water for hours with just their noses sticking out.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the capybaras still were missing.

Boat from 19th century found under New Jersey home

HIGHLANDS, N.J.

Workers raising a waterfront home in New Jersey made a nautical discovery: a 44-foot wooden boat from the 19th century.

The 12-foot-wide vessel, its rudder fully intact, was found beneath Eileen Scanlon’s Highlands bungalow May 25, the Asbury Park Press reported. The boat likely was used to transport coal and other goods along local waterways, and pieces of coal were found scattered along the floor.

Rumors of the vessel’s existence had circulated for years. Scanlon got a peek of what looked like a rudder through the home’s crawlspace shortly after buying it in 2010, but she didn’t anticipate the size and scope of the boat. It’s built from 3-inch-thick wooden plants and is held together with 18-inch iron nails.

Scanlon temporarily stopped construction under the house and called Russell Card of the Historical Society of Highlands.

“It was beyond amazing,” Card said. “I’ve heard about it before, and the first time I ever saw it was yesterday. I never realized it was so big. I was amazed at the craftsmanship of it.”

The property was once a dock of sorts and people used to roll boats on wheels to get to and from the water, said Card, who believes someone left the boat and built the home around it.

The boat will be destroyed, but Scanlon plans to place the bow in her garden.

Nails spill on Ohio highway during rush hour, flatten tires

PERRYSBURG, Ohio

Authorities in Ohio say a load of nails spilled on a roadway during rush hour, leaving about a dozen commuters with flat tires.

State troopers say one lane of traffic on Interstate 475 just south of Toledo was closed for more than an hour Wednesday morning to clean up the spill. Troopers estimate that there were about 200 nails scattered across the roadway.

The spill happened around 7 a.m. between Perrysburg and Maumee. No one was hurt.

Associated Press