Once, Staten Island was a rich and teeming countryside, a respite from the hubub of the city, and an island graced by a magnificent indiginous species called the Staten Island Scooting Elk. For centuries, these beautiful, peace-loving mammals would roam the island, scooting along on their stomachs, as is their unique tendency. Now, sadly, the Staten Island Scooting Elk is all but extinct. With the Industrial Age came new threats to Staten Island's burgeoning wildlife. Another threat is people with guns. The scooting elk is, alas, an easy target, as its characteristic fierce pride prevents it from hiding. One elk hunter from Tottenville told me, "Those scooting elk are sitting ducks. They just scoot right up to you. They're looking for trouble." Today, the elegant creatures are glimpsed only rarely. At the time of this writing, which is to say shortly after midnight, there are thought to be fewer than 100 left. It is my hope that this website will increase awareness, and perhaps even inspire someone to actually do something. I was privileged to see Staten Island Scooting Elk several times during my long exile there, and on three occasions I was fortunate enough to have a camera with me. As a tribute to these incredible animals, I now share these photographs for the first time. Photograph #1 I was at a Staten Island Yankees game, throatily cheering our minor heroes -- very minor -- to victory. Suddenly, a wave of excitement overtook the crowd. A particularly splendid native elk was scooting right across the field! Thank goodness I had my camera. The elk managed to steal third base, but was thrown out of the game. Photograph #2 In this candid snapshot, an undeniably stunning Staten Island elk scoots along Bay Street,on the island's north shore. In the background, note the popular cafe Cargo, with its ever-changing mural facade. Pictured here is a grotesque model of a star-spangled spider, with a life-sized Sadaam Hussein doll dangling from a web. The mural, by well-known Staten Island warmonger Scott Lobaido, caused a borough-wide elk boycott of Cargo. The scooting elk, liberal secular humanists at heart, have long been vocal about their contempt for Lobaido. Photograph #3 In this non-award-winning photograph, a family of especially meaty elk scoots its way across the inspiring span of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. The elk are on their way home from a hootenanny in Brooklyn. Back to noahdiamond.com Write to me