It only now occurs to me (by help of this diagram) that the traditional western mermaid has a fish tail, but in a dolphin/whale horizontal orientation. This vertical orientation looks odd, but really is more in line with being "half fish".
Not that things like monster girls care about making sense, but it would be a little better if they did have dolphin or whale lower halves. At least then the blood temp question wouldn't crop up.
Not that things like monster girls care about making sense, but it would be a little better if they did have dolphin or whale lower halves. At least then the blood temp question wouldn't crop up.
It only now occurs to me (by help of this diagram) that the traditional western mermaid has a fish tail, but in a dolphin/whale horizontal orientation. This vertical orientation looks odd, but really is more in line with being "half fish".
I always thought that mermaids were suppose to be mammalish fishes. Like, they'll be technically warm blooded mammals with both lungs and gils but lay eggs...like birds or something along the line of that.
But fantasy, it doesn't really need any scientific reasoning or explainations. It's just magic.
Interesting fact: There is an actual medical condition that causes the vagina, rectum and urethra to fuse together, forming a cloaca just like in this picture. It's called "persistent cloaca".
I always thought that mermaids were suppose to be mammalish fishes. Like, they'll be technically warm blooded mammals with both lungs and gils but lay eggs...like birds or something along the line of that.
But fantasy, it doesn't really need any scientific reasoning or explainations. It's just magic.
I'd always considered them to be entirely mammals. I think I've seen more art of mermaids with flukes that move vertically like a running creature than tails that wiggle horizontally, too. Even ancient/classical art.
A fish's excretory openings appear just in front of the anal fin. If a fish was to be split into upper and lower halves, it'd make sense to divide it at this point and equate it with the waist. This excretory opening is connected to the anus, reproductive organs, and kidneys.
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