The moon rises high this Halloween night, casting expansive obsidian shadows across the Earth. A black cat slips past unseen, its coat devouring the darkness, while its eyes gleam like embers in the glow of jack-o'-lanterns.

Two North American river otter pups have been released back into the wild after undergoing five months of rehabilitation at Think Wild Central Oregon and the Wildlife Center of the North Coast. Infant river otters rescued in Central Oregon. Photo courtesy of Think Wild Central Oregon. On June 26, 2024, while patrolling Cove Palisades State Park, park ranger Tyler Banks made an extraordinary discovery. Nestled in a roadside ditch were three tiny river otter pups. The otter pup