Lower New York Bay.

These ancient, armored creatures still live among us. The Lined Seahorse is a native New Yorker.

Lower New York Bay.

We don’t expect to see deer in New York City, let alone in the waterways of New York. But in October 2011, three frantic deer were found at the foot of the Verrazano Bridge in Brooklyn. Naturally strong swimmers, the deer likely swam over from Staten Island, but the circumstances of their watery journey are suspicious: one deer’s hind legs were bound with twine.

Lower New York Bay.

We’d totally understand if you wanted to write about this one. You wouldn’t be alone.

Lower New York Bay.

When the Army Corps of Engineers dredged up this surprising haul, they guessed it was pitched off the side of a circus ship after it died. Or maybe it escaped the circus (go giraffe, go!), only to meet its fate in the Atlantic (stop giraffe, stop!).