The marshlands in Jamaica Bay that make up a portion of the Gateway National Recreation area and includes the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge are disappearing so quickly that some estimate all of the marshes could disappear in as few as five years. The New York Times reports that recent satellite images indicate that about 33 acres of tidal wetlands in the bay are disappearing annually, almost double the prior estimate of 18 acres per year based on a 2001 study. The cause of disappearing marshes is disputed and recommendations for their preservation involve a lot of money. more ›

The New York Times has a great story about police officer John Nevandro, who has been patrolling the boardwalk at Coney Island in Brooklyn for 21 years. When he started walking the beachside beat, he had to chase off perverts looking to glance up women's skirts from below the boardwalk. Now he knows the boardwalk so well that he can tell which sections need repair from the sound planks make as he rolls over them in his NYPD golf cart. more ›

There are some very observant drivers on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and BQE. WCBS 2 reports that a number of drivers called 911 to report that a freighter ship was sinking in the New York Harbor. But it turns out the freighter, Dockwise Swan, is actually supposed to sink a little bit! more ›

The Daily News reports that the cause of death is still unknown for a young minke whale that made its way to Brooklyn's Gowanus Bay. But the necropsy confirmed that the whale was a young female and that there were no signs of significant trauma. Now tissue samples of the whale will be sent to pathologists to conduct more tests. more ›

• Today on Gothamist Newsmap: A ceiling collapse at Bowling Green/Battery Park on the subway's 4 line this morning, a bank robbery at 206th St. and Bainbridge Ave. in the Bronx, and a report of a missing child at Franklin Ave. in Brooklyn.
• Imminent end of an era as the actual physical floor of the NYSE gets quieter daily.
• Original "Buffy" Kristy Swanson to appear on L&O as Anna Nic a drug-addled blonde bombshell with a dead son. Link has priceless pic of Chris Noth looking for clues in Swanson's decolletage.

No holiday gridlock here! A month after it refused to budge from Pier 86, the U.S.S. Intrepid has successfully been freed from the mud and is on its way to Bayonne, NJ for repairs. Six tugboats with over 30,000 horsepower helped the 27,000 ton vessel down the Hudson River. The Intrepid Foundation's president Bill White yelled, "This old baby is moving!" and other crewmembers reportedly cried. One man who served on the Intrepid during WWII told the AP, "It's like it used to be, only better. There's no bloodshed." more ›

The underwater windmills, er, turbines, are coming! more ›

I've been sitting on this MetaFilter post since yesterday: Hurricane Risk for New Orleans. Surely you've noticed even Drudge has gotten whipped into a 10,000 BODYBAGS!! frenzy. As a Louisianian, I appreciate the interest--until it devolves into rubbernecking, or when people start trotting out the same old "It's a corrupt city that will never get its act together," "anyone who lives there is an idiot," let 'em all die BS. more ›

Another pretty freakin' nice day. Mostly sunny, high of 80, with 49% "maximum" humidity. Ah. more ›