Mermaid (SciiFii)

The mermaid (Sirenapithecus marinus), also known as the merfolk and the siren, is a species of aquatic ape, and a member of the human family, that originally did not exist, but has since been created by SciiFii and introduced throughout the world's oceans and shorelines. The mermaid is a rather large hominid, growing to be about 7-9 feet in length from head to feet. Unlike in myths, the mermaids are not half humans and half fish hybrids, but are rather meant to be much more realistic versions of the mythical mermaids, being primarily based off the fictional mermaids of the Animal Planet's Mermaids: The Body Found pseudo-documentary. The mermaid has a pair of webbed hands for gripping and steering while swimming, an entirely hairless body unlike terrestrial human species, a slender torso, blueish-gray skin, and, uniquely among tetrapods, its legs fused together to form a dolphin-like dugong-like fin, often mistaken for a tail, with its leg bones softening and loosening to allow a far more efficient swimming than other humans. Despite lacking blubber for insulation, the mermaid has antifreeze in its blood to prevent the mermaid from freezing to death in the Arctic Ocean and the Antarctic Ocean. The mermaid is almost entirely carnivorous and feeds primarily on fish, mollusks, crustaceans, worms, and other aquatic animals smaller than itself, although it is known to feed on kelp to supplement its diet. The mermaid has a highly developed dolphin-like sonar system in its head to help it echolocate to find its way around in even the murkiest waters. The mermaid is about as smart as common humans (Homo sapiens) and has a diverse range of cultures, religions, science, technologies, languages (including English), etc. The mermaid has a social structure resembling a cross between those of humans and those of toothed whales (including dolphins). Due to being almost entirely aquatic, the mermaid has developed a similar reproductive organs to those of whales. The gestation period of the mermaid is around 6-7 months, shorter than those of common humans, the young are born tail-first (similarly to whales), almost always born underwater, and the mermaids reaches sexual maturity at around 10-15 years in age, maturing earlier than many human species. The mermaid is able to work and live with humans in more coastal areas, as the mermaids are not fully aquatic, and moves on land very similarly to earless seals, often compared to an inchworm in terms of locomotion on land. The conservation status of the mermaid is Least Concern due to successful conservation efforts, the mermaid's wide range and its tolerance to many of the human activities.